


Consult My Lover

by insomniacjams



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: BDSM, Dom/sub, I don't even know what to tag this with, Liam is a dog, Light Bondage, M/M, Petplay, Spanking, Sub Liam, This was supposed to be a PWP, but there's plot and feelings and stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-27
Updated: 2014-08-13
Packaged: 2018-02-10 14:40:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 33,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2028846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insomniacjams/pseuds/insomniacjams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In an attempt to keep his pristine reputation, Liam's father, an affluent businessman, pays off Zayn, the son of an equally affluent businessman in their small town, to look after his unwed, unaccomplished adult son in the nearby city. Zayn thought he was getting a roommate in a former classmate he hadn't seen in nearly a decade.</p><p>He ended up with a dog.</p><p>OR</p><p>The one where Zayn is a successful artist and gallery owner and Liam is his pet dog. They fuck. A lot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings for light bondage, petplay, spanking, handcuffs, dirty talk, sub!Liam, bottom!Liam, I can't even remember what's in here. There's a ton of sex, and sometimes feelings. This story has not been beta read and I have a tendency to miss words, and I apologize for that in advance.
> 
> Title from the AFI song of the same name: [Consult My Lover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1LNwnh4UMo). 
> 
>  
> 
> _"I'm proud of you, so proud of you."_

He returned to his hometown to deliver a eulogy. 

"Yaser Malik was a great man with a strong will and endless ambition," Zayn said under the afternoon sun. Beads of sweat collected on his forehead and rolled down his cheeks like they were trying to accommodate for the tears that wouldn't come. "He will be missed," Zayn said, and in that moment with an audience of bowed heads adorned in black, baking in the heat, he almost believed it.

Springfield hadn't changed in the years he'd been gone – the Smiths still owned the majority of the real estate (and the real estate company), the factories still employed washed out football stars, the river ran dry in the summer months, and the bookshop where Zayn used to spend his days still stocked comics though he was sure he'd been the only one who bought them.

It'd been nearly ten years since he'd last set foot on Springfield soil, and he made the most of it, digging the toe of his oxford into the hard packed ground of the cemetery as the coffin lowered into the grave. He hadn't missed the harsh conditions that made for a town circled around factory work – he hadn't missed the burning heat of summer or the icy cold of winter.

The town had stirred from its slumber on the news of Yaser's death, and in conjunction, Zayn's return. "You still can't so much as sneeze around here without someone else hearing," Waliyha sighed, tugging Zayn's arm and leading him back toward their family. "They've been talking 'bout you for weeks. People were sayin' you died, or something – wouldn't listen when Safaa and I told them otherwise."

He'd run the day he graduated, the dumb hat tossed in the air in one moment, and the town left behind in a cloud of dust the next with how fast he'd gone. He'd brought nothing but a duffle of clothes and backpack with electronics to the city; he'd lived off the streets for an indefinite period where he spent his life in limbo.

One day he'd woken up on the side of the road, trying to pawn some art off for food, when someone looked at him and asked, "Did you draw this?" 

It started out with commissioned art. 

It turned into a career.

Then he'd settled down.

Now, in the city, he had a two bedroom apartment where one of the rooms functioned as a full-fledged art studio, with modern furniture and a fully-stocked kitchen. He'd learned to cook and clean and take care of himself, and in the meantime, picked up a couple friends he called the best he ever had. It wasn't Springfield.

"We've got to get going," Doniya said when Zayn and Waliyha approached the family. "We need to get mom back to the house and prepare for the guests later." Zayn nodded – he had no part in preparing for the guests, but he figured the least he could do was take his sisters in his car. 

Waliyha clung to him like she had since he returned, trailing after him to the car. "So tell me, brother," she sighed, "How does it feel to be back?"

"Like I've walked into a time warp," Zayn snorted. "It's like I went and grew up without everyone else here. This party's going to be awful, and I'm not saying that because baba's gone – it's going to be like a high school reunion I didn't want an invitation to."

"You either get out of this hellhole, or you don't," Waliyha sighed, closing her eyes and politely looking the other way when Zayn pulled out his pack of smokes. It was a bad habit, but Springfield had always seemed to bring out the worst in him. "Can't be as bad as a high school reunion though – you make small talk and then they'll be gone."

"Can I ask you something?" Zayn sighed, starting up the car.

"You just did," Waliyha snorted, plucking the cigarette from between his lips and taking a slow drag before returning it. "But yeah, no, go for it."

"You're an adult now – have been for a few years – why haven't you tried to get out? Why haven't you come to visit?" Waliyha let out a slow breath like she was fighting the smoke that Zayn tried to blow out his window. 

"Some of us, we're content here," She said after a long moment of silence, and Zayn knew it wasn't just about her – it was about his mom, and Doniya too. "Maybe Safaa will join you one day," she added as an afterthought, a beat too late, and Zayn shook his head, because he knew she was just like the rest of the women in his family – bullheaded and stubborn, waiting on their turn to marry, continue the family, and die.

They were last to arrive at the house. "You're late," Doniya screeched, and Zayn just grumbled, jamming his hands into his pockets and pushing into the house. Waliyha followed quietly behind, and Zayn knew it'd be the last he'd see of her for a while.

When the guests finally arrived, he busied himself making small talk with the familiar faces. It wasn't like the movies – the nerds hadn't grown up to be CEOs of multimillion dollar companies; they still wore the same dumb graphic t-shirts and crooked glasses and pretentious attitude. 

Zayn had lost his glasses somewhere in the past ten years, buried them in the rush of the city lights and never looked back. He'd grown into his face, losing a bit of the baby fat he'd clung on to as a kid and cut his hair, spending hours learning how to style it into something presentable. 

So Zayn was never a nerd – just the quiet kid that tried to stay in the corners during lunch – but he wasn't a CEO of a multimillion dollar corporation either. The kids from the football team, the ones that hadn't got out on scholarship, were all tradesmen. He nodded politely as the now factory workers, roofers and plumbers talked about their trophy wives and young children. "You's lookin' good," a guy told him, and Zayn had nodded then, biting his tongue, thinking about the way that particular guy had enjoyed pushing Zayn into his locker every morning for three years, yelling, "You's lookin' like a faggot."

"You've got to be nice," Doniya hissed, jabbing a finger into Zayn's side when the door opened yet again, and fashionably late, the Payne family walked through the door. And, Zayn thought, nearing thirty was not the age to be trailing after your parents like a duckling, but Liam Payne had never not followed someone else, for as long as Zayn had known him. "You know they're an influential family in this town," Doniya reminded him, and Zayn pursed his lips, set his expression stony cold, but nodded anyway as his sister rushed to greet them.

Like Zayn, Liam had been quiet – he'd toddled after whoever gave him the time of day, and when he caught the attention of the football captain Louis Tomlinson back in their freshman year, he'd clung on for dear life until the two of them were inseparable. Zayn hadn't meant to watch them so closely, but it was hard not to watch Louis – the boy had bathed in the spotlight, and Liam had just stood stoic and silent at his side, looking small with wide, innocent eyes.

He still looked small, though he'd certainly grown since Zayn had fled the day of their graduation. The last time he'd crossed paths with Liam Payne, they'd been wearing graduation robes and tossing hats into the air. Liam had caught his with a wide smile that crinkled his eyes. Zayn's had fallen to the ground, and he'd been nowhere to be found.

Now, he looked older – mature. His shoulders were broad, his hair was short and styled impeccably, his suit neat and his tie straight. Zayn wasn't even wearing a tie – hadn't remembered to pack one and couldn't be fucked to borrow one.

But he was still the same boy that Zayn had left behind, catching his cap from the air like he was ready for the first day of the rest of his life. He was still the same boy, fingers tangled together nervously in front of his stomach, chewing his bottom lip like he missed his pacifier, and looking at his shoes, like he was waiting for someone to tell him what to do.

"Zayn Malik," Mr. Payne boomed, and Zayn felt that he was the one who'd been spreading the false rumours of his death. "It's good to see you back in Springfield."

"Good to see you're doing well," Zayn said, shaking his hand, ignoring how the grip was just shy of too tight. "Liam, how've you been?" Zayn asked politely, and Liam lifted his head at the mention of his name. He looked stunned, his eyes wide, like he wasn't sure what to say. 

"I've been alright," Liam said, and his father clapped him rather hard on the shoulder.

"Liam has been helping me out at the office," he said proudly, like he was showing off his son. "What have you been doing these last few years, Zayn? I heard you moved to the city and left your father to take care of the company himself."

"You and I both know that it was always Doniya who took care of the company," Zayn said offhandedly, eyeing Liam's nervous smile as he spoke. "I've just been working in the city."

"And what is it that you do for work?" Mr. Payne pressed on, and Zayn felt it was necessary to ignore the embarrassed flush of Liam's cheeks. 

"I run an art gallery – and I paint," Zayn said. It was the same thing he'd always done, whether in Springfield or elsewhere. It was the thing he'd always do, no matter where he was. He'd always paint – some days, he felt that paint thrummed through his veins instead of blood, and inspiration soaked in through his skin from the polluted air.

"That sounds very progressive," Mr. Payne said. "Do you run this gallery by yourself?"

"I do, yes," Zayn confirmed. "There are volunteers sometimes, students from the art school nearby that come in, but I do all of the heavy lifting. I'm thinking it's about time to hire on some staff though," Zayn chuckled. "There's so much potential for growth."

"Well Liam here was actually looking for a job in the city," Mr. Payne said, delighted. "In fact, he's rather good at administration work and basic accounting-"

"Dad," Liam cut his father off with a low, plaintive whimper. 

"It was good to see you again, Mr. Payne," Zayn said quickly, sparing Liam from the embarrassment of his father. Of course, Liam, like him, was a grown adult – and perfectly capable of finding work for himself. "Here," he fumbled into his pockets and withdrew a business card. "If you ever need anything, this is how to reach me. I do need to find out where my sisters have gone now, but please feel free to help yourself to the refreshments on the counter. Good to see you too, Liam." Zayn fled.

Later that night, after the house had emptied and Zayn had stuffed himself to the brim with his mom's legendary home cooking, eyes watering from the spiciness he'd lacked in his own cooking, the girls pulled out the photo albums after taking their mom to bed.

They flipped through Zayn's old school photos, talking about the families that had attended the gathering. "It was rather nice of the Payne family to show up," Doniya commented. "I know Mr. Payne and baba were merely business partners, but he's always struck me as a nice guy." Zayn nodded in agreement. 

"Liam grew up well," Waliyha commented. Doniya and Zayn looked at her, scandalized, and she held up her hands in self-defence. "Hey, I can appreciate a good looking man. He used to be all kinds of goofy when he was in high school but he's-"

"He's almost thirty, Waliyha," Doniya reminded her sternly, to which Waliyha muttered angrily under her breath about there being no age restrictions on true love. Zayn just sighed, and turned the page again. 

"Whatever happened to Tomlinson?" He asked, looking at the picture of Louis and Liam, one he'd taken on the last day of classes his junior year, just to remember what it felt like, watching them all from a distance, watching them in their stationary lives, while Zayn's world continued to revolve.

"I'm not sure," Doniya frowned. "He was touted to be some big football prospect until he wrecked his shoulder, and after that, he kind of disappeared. Like, one day he was here in Springfield working at the supermarket, and the next he was gone. I guess he must've gone to the city like you."

"Yeah, but everyone knew I went to the city," Zayn frowned. "My whole year thought he'd become a big football star or nothing – that he'd stay here and work in the factories like the rest of 'em if that didn't pan out."

"I heard a rumour," Waliyha said, grinning brightly. "I heard he had a mental breakdown and came out of the closet and ran off to Hollywood to pursue a career in acting, which failed, and he's back in the city now."

"Where did you here that?" Safaa asked, speaking up for the first time that night from where she lay sprawled on baba's armchair. 

"From his mother; got a few drinks in her at a staff party," Waliyha chuckled. "Started spewing stuff about the church and her no-good, faggot of a son." Zayn frowned, the lines creasing his face, and Doniya sighed.

"That's enough of that," she said sharply, closing the photo album. "I think it's time we get some sleep. I'm going home, and if you'd rather stay with me than at Walihya's dirty basement, speak now or forever hold your peace."

"I'm fine in the basement," Zayn said, and Doniya nodded, waving before she disappeared out the door. Safaa said a quick goodnight before disappearing up the stairs to her bedroom, and Waliyha led Zayn down the narrow stairs to the basement that was his before he'd disappeared and she'd taken over.

The pull-out couch was set up for him already, layered with thin blankets that he certainly wouldn't need in the excruciating summer heat. "Thank you," he said, and Waliyha nodded, sitting nervously on the edge of the bed. 

"I was serious about Liam," she said, and Zayn looked at her with a frown. "I think his dad was worried he wouldn't amount to much for a long time, but he did grow up quite nice – I don't mean he got bigger, like, I mean he's a real gentleman. He worked at the bank with me for a while, and he was a proper courteous fellow."

"Why are you telling me this?" Zayn sighed, scrubbing his face with the palm of his hand, wiping away the sweat that collected there. 

"I saw you talking to Mr. Payne today," Waliyha sighed. "Look, it isn't a secret that he wants his son to move away from home. The guy doesn't know what to do with himself here – it'd be better for him to get away, and well, working at an art gallery is liberal enough that Liam would enjoy it but his father would approve of the hard work and dedication it takes."

"You mentioned it to him before I even got here, didn't you?"

"And here I was, thinking you didn't know me at all," Waliyha chuckled. "He's going to give you a call soon, I think. He's going to offer you money, or some sort of incentive if you won't willingly take Liam on. The thing is, it reflects badly on him when his only son is so dependent – at this rate, we know the company is going to one of his sisters."

"Why are you helping him?" Zayn asked, and Waliyha sighed, turning away from Zayn.

"I heard Mr. Payne wanted to send Liam to the city, and I just… I thought he reminded me of you. It treated you so good – you left a boy and came home a man."

"But not without my own hardships," Zayn said, and though he preferred not to discuss those first few years, bumming around on streets and couches without a direction, he knew it was relevant.

"That's why I want you to take care of him," Waliyha said. "It'd be good for him; the town's been starting to talk some rough shit about him – it'd be good for Payne's company-"

"And why do we care if it's good for Payne's company?" 

Waliyha took a shaky breath. "Because since baba got sick, Doniya has been in the process of buying it – it's time to expand, Zayn."

"Ah."

"So you'll do it then, when Mr. Payne calls?" Waliyha asked, and Zayn knew that this decision, it didn't just impact his own life. It impacted his sisters', and the town's. 

"I'll do it," Zayn grumbled. "If he names the right price."

As Waliyha predicted, the phone call came the next day as Zayn was strolling through the quiet streets in town, pretending he couldn't hear the ghosts of whispers that followed him wherever he went. "Mr. Payne, it's always a pleasure to hear from you," Zayn said into his cell phone, dropping down onto a bench, crossing his legs at the knee and stretching out, trying not to sweat out of his own skin in the meantime.

And again as predicted, Mr. Payne went on to offer Zayn a large monetary amount to, in his words, "keep" Liam for a few months. In fact, he grew ecstatic when he learned that Zayn had a spare bedroom that could be converted from the studio that, to be honest, Zayn rarely used anyway as he had a bigger, better one at his disposal above the gallery.

He was promised money for food and rent as well as a hefty sum for himself, until Liam was settled into his own place and had obtained a job – whether under Zayn or of his own volition. And Zayn, who was no fool and had no desire to sink his sisters' future, agreed.

"You said the town's been talking some rough shit about Liam," Zayn said that night over dinner, and Doniya's ears perked up.

"You agreed to the deal, then?"

"I did," Zayn nodded. "Though, I'd like to know what I've gotten myself into."

"Nothing really," Waliyha said. "Honest. He's just quiet – like you were. Pretty drawn into his shell. They say he doesn't know how to make his own decisions," and Zayn nodded at that, because from what he remembered, Liam Payne never had been able to make his own decisions, constantly seeking approval from those around him. 

"I hope he'll just keep to himself," Zayn commented.

"I'm sure he will," Doniya nodded. "We need to go back to the cemetery to check if everything's good tomorrow," she said, prim and proper, matter-of-factly changing the subject. Zayn pushed his food around his plate, and bit his tongue, letting his sisters discuss the process of headstone engraving. 

"I think it'd be good for you too," Waliyha said quietly that night as Zayn followed her into the basement yet again. 

"Why's that?" Zayn asked.

"I think it'd be good for you to have someone to take care of," she said. "I'm back to work tomorrow, so I won't be around when you wake up, but have a safe drive home and don't forget to call often."

"Never do," Zayn said, like there wasn't a few years in between when things had been shaky between him and his family. "You'll be the first one I call the minute something goes wrong."

"That's the problem," Waliyha sighed, turning toward her bedroom. "I wish you'd get the nerve to call before something went wrong."

"Me too," Zayn said quietly, but it was to an empty room, his sister already gone.


	2. Friday/Saturday

"How was your trip home?" Harry asked casually, leaning against the wall as he tried to straighten one of his pieces on display.

"Springfield is like a time bubble," Zayn sighed, burying his hands in his hair, knowing he was ruining the careful work he'd put into styling his quiff that morning. "I go back and nothing's changed – it's like they've all grown up, but they haven't moved on from the same old shit they used to do back when I lived there a decade ago. And nobody cried."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Harry, my father died, and nobody cried – not my sisters, my mothers, his business partners – it was like any other damn get together. That scares me, man."

"It'd scare me too," Harry said, stepping back from the painting, finally satisfied.

"You busy after this?"

"No, why?" Harry asked, turning to face Zayn curiously.

"I need a hand moving shit out from a studio. I'm getting a roommate in a few days." Harry frowned, crossing the gallery in a few long strides and walking into Zayn's space, the way he'd done since the first day they'd met (Hi, I'm Harry Styles. I'm your new intern. – I don't need an intern. – Well you have one now).

"Why? I didn't know you were looking for a roommate."

"Me neither," Zayn sighed, leaning his chin on Harry's shoulder and winding his arms around Harry's waist. "He's the son of some big shot business man in Springfield – gotta uphold a reputation of some sort. Can't have his adult son bumming around living out of daddy's house, right?"

"So he's pawning him off on you? That hardly seems fair."

"He's paying me," Zayn sighed. "New paints, more lights, the renovations to the loft we've always wanted-" Zayn broke off, looking around the gallery. It was his baby – his pride and joy. "It's not that I don't have enough money to live comfortably, it's just that I'd like to do more."

"You always want to do more," Harry rolled his eyes. "So who's this guy?"

"His name is Liam, and he's coming on the bus this weekend – I need to have the room empty by then."

"I'll help," Harry agreed, "but only if we get pizza." Zayn scoffed – they'd get pizza regardless of cleaning (but he had a feeling Harry knew that). 

It was dark by the time they finished. Zayn's spare art supplies, the stuff he usually let Niall and Perrie muck around with during off days, were stored in boxes to be transferred to the loft, the private area of the gallery. He removed the paintings from the wall, collapsed the easel, and vacuumed the flecks of clay and dirt from the floor.

"I'm picking him up from the bus station," Zayn told Harry. "I don't know what he's going to be like – haven't seen him, save for the funeral, since high school. He was a bit skittish back then. I might be absent for a bit, so-"

"I can watch the gallery," Harry assured him. "It's gonna be weird without this here."

"I do all my work at the loft these days anyway," Zayn shrugged, and it was true, as since he came upon the real estate, Zayn had practically lived in the gallery to the point where there was a futon in the loft where he could sleep if the painting kept him out late.

"Well," Harry sighed, reaching for the pizza menu on the counter. "Just let me know if you need anything else while you're busy babysitting."

"God, I hope not," Zayn said, peering over Harry's shoulder. "I may as well call Perrie and Niall over and let them know this might be the last time we can have the apartment together like this."

"Don't be so pessimistic. I'm sure Liam will get on with all of us fine too – hell, we have Niall. You can't hate Niall."

"Yes, yes you can," Zayn groaned, thinking about the Irishman's cherub face, cheery disposition, and tendency to inhale anything edible within an eight foot radius. "Trust me, you definitely can."

They called for pizza, they called for Niall, and they called for Perrie. Half an hour later, they all sprawled across the couches with greasy fingers and steaming hot pizza. "Tell me more about Liam," Perrie said, the only one who hadn't immediately jumped for the food.

She looked up at Zayn expectantly, who just shook his head. "Not much to tell you, really – he's from Springfield, born and raised. He's my age, was in my year in school actually, and uh, his dad owns one of the biggest companies out of that shithole town."

"I thought your dad did," Niall commented around a mouthful of food, to which Zayn nodded. 

"He did; he owned the other one – Doniya, my older sister, she's in control of the company now, and baba probably would've rolled over in his grave if he knew what she did – she's in the process of buying out Liam's dad's company and merging the two into one under the same name. Hell, he'd probably roll over in his grave if he knew I showed my face back in Springfield for his funeral, never mind that my sisters let me deliver the eulogy."

"Your dad sounds like a lovely fellow," Perrie drawled sarcastically, finally reaching for the pizza just before Niall had completely devoured a whole one by himself. 

"I left for a reason," Zayn assured her, pushing aside his plate. "It's gonna be weird, having another person around. It's been so long sometimes I forget what it's like to have normal people around."

"What are we?" Niall snorted around a string of cheese. "Animals?"

"Artists," Zayn rolled his eyes. "A breed all of your own, I swear. Especially you, Niall."

"Glad you think so," Niall smirked, following the string of cheese with his teeth.

"You're gross," Harry said, prodding him in the side. Zayn agreed silently, watching his friends squabble as Perrie leaned into his side. 

"Awfully good of you to be doing this for a stranger," she said. "A bit out of character, if you ask me."

"I wasn't given much of a choice," Zayn said, and he ended the conversation there, reaching across the coffee table for another slice of pizza.

He picked Liam up that Saturday evening from the bus station. "Did you want to grab dinner first?" Zayn asked, watching as Liam hefted his large suitcase into the truck of Zayn's car. The suitcase was massive – it looked like it held more than the entirety of Zayn's possessions when he had left Springfield himself.

"Sure, wherever is fine, I'm not picky," Liam said, and it was silent for the ride to Zayn's favourite Italian place. Liam wore a button up shirt, each and every single button done up tight to his chin, and a pair of pressed trousers that looked more expensive than anything Zayn had put on since he was young and forced to attend all of his baba's business parties.

Liam stared out the window the entire car ride, letting the wind ruffle his hair as he gazed out into the lights of the city, mesmerized. "It's not that I haven't seen the city before," he defended himself before Zayn could ask. "I've just never quite seen it like this." 

And Zayn wasn't too sure what to make of that, because the city there, twinkling in the setting sun, was the only city he'd ever seen. 

"You should get used to it," he said after a moment of silence, pulling into the parking lot of _Ciao Bella_ and leading Liam into the familiar restaurant. 

"Zayn, good to see you," Jade, the hostess and a former volunteer at Zayn's gallery greeted him with a warm smile. "Who's this you've brought tonight?"

"This is Liam; he's from my hometown. Liam, Jade," he smiled, introducing the two. Liam nodded politely and shook her hand, firm, polite and professional. It struck Zayn as odd, how a man so well-rounded and gentlemanly could go unwed and unmotivated for so long that his father felt the need to remove him from the picture.

"I'll show you to your table," Jade said, bringing the two of them to a booth overlooking the street, Zayn's favourite spot in the restaurant. "Can I start you with any drinks or do you need a minute with the menu?"

"I'll just have a water, please," Liam requested, and Zayn asked for his usual coffee. Jade nodded, disappearing back to her post, and Liam turned his attention back to Zayn. "Look, I'm really sorry about all this – I appreciate you going out of your way to do this for me. I know my dad can be, uh, convincing if needed and-"

"He promised me a lot of money," Zayn said flatly, and Liam looked taken aback, like he hadn't been expecting Zayn to outright say it like that. He knew it was rather blunt, but it was the truth, and Zayn had never been one to hide from the truth. 

"He was just frustrated, I think, that I wasn't over my phase," Liam sighed, and Zayn waited patiently for him to continue. Jade returned with their drinks, and he stirred his coffee, watching Liam contemplatively – watching the red lips, swollen from biting, nerves, wrap around the straw and suck. "Guess office work is a girl's job or something; can't have the whole town knowing his only son and hope for carrying on the family name is a faggot, right?"

"No," Zayn said.

"What?"

"We don't use that word," Zayn frowned. "I don't know what your dad tells you, or what he calls you, but when you are living under my roof, you do not use words like that."

"Okay," Liam said, and Zayn nodded, pleased that there was no argument. "Do you know what you're ordering?" Liam thankfully changed the topic, and Zayn nodded his head. "Is there something you like? Something that you'd recommend? I don't eat out much."

"The manicotti is really good," Zayn said, pointing to one of his favourite items on the menu. "Honestly, it's all very good, except maybe the salads since I had one with very limp lettuce once, but the manicotti is brilliant."

"I'll get that then," Liam said, satisfied with his decision. "So, uh, I don't know what kind of deal my dad made with you, but I can be out of your way in no time. I'll just find my own place and a job, and you won't ever have to see me again. He probably lied, and talked me up. I do office work, but I'm not particularly good at it, like, I can do the basic stuff but I don't make a good secretary or anything, no matter how hard I try."

Zayn took a deep breath. "Look, Liam, I'm going to be honest, I don't need a secretary. I need someone who can run errands – someone to lift heavy things and help with some of the remodelling I have planned for my gallery. I don't have office work for you, but if you can lift a few pounds and use a hammer, I could probably put you to work somewhere."

"Really?" Liam perked up at the anticipation of being useful, a small smiling spreading across his face for the first time since Zayn had retrieved him from the bus depot. 

"Yeah," Zayn couldn't help but quirk his lips upward; Liam's smile was infectious, with the way it made his eyes glow, warm and genuine joy hiding behind the upturned lips. It was rare to find a smile so natural. "So I take it you can help me out?"

"Of course," Liam said, nodding enthusiastically, head flopping around like a bobble head. Zayn laughed, and nodded.

"Good. You'll start Monday."

Jade returned then to take their orders, and like he'd said, Liam ordered the manicotti. They made small talk, discussing Springfield and its various businesses before Jade returned with their food. "It's like the whole place hasn't changed in a decade," Zayn told Liam wrapping his spaghetti around his fork. "I go away for a while, and I come back ten years later, and everything's the same – down to the bookshop where I used to work when I got away from my father's company."

"It's comfortable," Liam said, poking experimentally at his food before taking a small bite. He made a pleased face, features relaxing as he took a bigger bite, lips pursed around his fork. Zayn took note of the way he smiled after each bite, like enjoying the taste and texture of the pasta like he'd never eat again. Then he looked up and frowned over his forkful of pasta. "It's too comfortable."

"So comfortable it's uncomfortable?" Zayn offered, and Liam nodded in agreement with an awkward chuckle. They both finished their meals after that, lost in their own memories of the town that raised them – the town that made them who they were.

"Are you glad you got out when you did?" Liam asked quietly as Zayn paid for their meal. Zayn shrugged.

"Are you glad you left?"

"I don't know," Liam said, and Zayn nodded.

"That's how I felt for a long time – I left my mother, let down my father, abandoned my sisters-"

"But you got out," Liam said, and Zayn nodded again.

"So did you."

"A bit late," Liam said, climbing back into the car. Zayn sighed. 

"Better late than never, right?"

Liam trailed after Zayn into the building – Zayn handed him the spare key, showed him both the front and back entrances, and pointed out the stairs before pressing the button for the elevator. Liam listened attentively as Zayn powered through the important stuff, like the hours of the apartment staff and how to access the facilities like the gym, pool, and sauna. 

"If you're going to be using the gym and stuff, I can get you an extra key for those rooms too within the week," Zayn said as they exited the elevator onto the fourth floor. "My apartment – our apartment – is at the end of the hall."

"Thank you," Liam said as they stepped across the threshold. "I don't know if I've said it yet but I do mean it, you know? You don't need to do this – you could've kicked me to the streets."

"I've been on the streets," Zayn said slowly. "I really don't think I could've."

"Oh," Liam said.

"Especially if you have eyes that look like that. You'd be someone's bitch in a day – an hour – and be on your knees for the rest of your life," Zayn snorted, poking his head into his cupboard. "Tea?"

When he turned around, Liam stood stock still in the entrance to the apartment looking lost. He hadn't even taken off his shoes, a stunned expression across his face. 

"C'mon now," Zayn sighed, putting the box of earl gray down on the counter and walking across the kitchen, back to where Liam was standing. "The apartment isn't that great." That was a lie – it was pretty great – it had huge windows that overlooked the towering skyscrapers and winding river, it had a large living room with a big TV, and of course, it had art – all of Zayn's art – hanging on the walls. It was home.

"No, it's not," Liam said quickly. "I mean, it is, but it's not why, uh, I… The apartment's great," Liam stuttered. Zayn raised an eyebrow at the nervous, shaking mess of a man in front of him.

"You alright there?"

"You want me on my knees?" Liam asked quietly, eyes wide and stunned, and his voice came out weak and stilted, with an accompanying whimper. 

"Liam, no," Zayn said firmly, and Liam straightened immediately like someone had stuck him with a cattle prod. He stood stiff and tall, looking like he wasn't sure what to do with himself. "Take off your shoes – I'll put on the kettle and we can move your stuff into your room."

"Yes," Liam agreed emphatically, hurrying to crouch and fumble with his shoelaces. Zayn watched approvingly for a moment before moving back into the kitchen to boil some water for tea. He noticed how Liam stepped carefully out of his shoes, and that his socks matched – Zayn's socks only matched because all his socks were black, and to be honest, sometimes they were different lengths.

He turned away from the stove just in time to watch Liam place his shoes neatly on the shoe rack by the door and rub the back of his neck, eyes darting nervously around the room like he was trying to decide his next move. "Grab your bag," Zayn told him, and Liam reacted accordingly, gripping the handle of his suitcase and following Zayn down the hallway.

"This is my room," he said, pointing to the first door. "Bathroom is here," he gestured across the hall. "If you need towels or anything – soap, clean sheets, or even a notebook, they're all in this closet here. Just don't touch the paintbrushes on the top shelf. This is your room," Zayn finished, pushing open the door of what used to be his studio.

He'd moved a double bed into the room, along with a chest of drawers. Liam nodded approvingly, bringing his suitcase into the room with him and running his hand over the crisp, new sheets on the bed. "Thank you," he repeated, and Zayn slowly backed out from the room, and into the hall again to leave Liam some space to unpack.

"Tea will be ready in a minute if you want some," Zayn called over his shoulder. "How do you take it?" Zayn asked, filling the mugs as Liam walked into the kitchen.

"However you like," Liam said, so Zayn fixed two identical mugs of tea with honey, lemon, and a splash of milk. He placed the mugs down on the table and gestured to the chairs that Liam had been eyeing warily.

"Sit, c'mon," Zayn urged him, and Liam sat. He was a bit like a dog, Zayn thought, with the way he followed directions so naturally, like he was a cyborg programmed to obey Zayn's commands. 

"You don't, uh, I was serious when I said you don't need to do this," Liam said, wrapping his large hands around the mug. Zayn could imagine the heat seeping into his skin, warming him from the ever present chill in his apartment, despite the summer heat outside. "My dad's real good at buying people-"

"Looks like I'm okay with being bought," Zayn snorted. "Look, I'm not doing this for you, okay? Don't think for a moment that I am – I'm doing this because I'm a selfish piece of work who could use a bit of extra income to put into the gallery, so that's what's happening. And I figure in a week or so my renovations will be done and you'll have a new job, a new place, and we won't have to see each other again."

"Okay," Liam said, ducking his head and taking a sip of his tea. 

"Okay," Zayn mocked him, bringing his own cup to his lips. After a long moment of silence, Zayn looked up from his cup. "Besides, I feel like you could use the company."

"I assure you that you can find better company for $10 in Wal-Mart," Liam sighed, swirling the remnants of his tea around the mug and watching the liquid move. "I still don't know how to do the adult thing and make decisions without searching for constant approval from my parents – I've always had someone tell me what to do."

And huh, that explained a lot, Zayn knew, as he watched the way Liam's knuckles tighten on the mug and the way the muscles tightened under his shirt. He felt the rhythmic tapping of Liam's foot against the floor, and saw the furrow in his brow – the twitch in his eyelids. 

"Do you not know, or do you not want to know?" Zayn asked, trying to clarify, because those were two very different things. Liam hung his head, twisting his fingers together nervously around the mug. There was the answer, clear as day, when he wouldn't meet Zayn's eye, doing everything he could to avoid Zayn's gaze.

The seconds stretched on – the clock ticked, the air sat stale, the fridge whirled. Zayn finally stopped trying to get Liam's attention.

"So it's like that," he said finally, and Liam nodded once, still staring at his tea. "You're good at it," Zayn said, reaching forward to pry the empty mug from Liam's fingers. "Listening, I mean."

"Oh," Liam mumbled. A soft gasp escaped him as Zayn finally loosed the mug from his grip and moved across the kitchen to dump them in the sink – he'd deal with them in the morning. "So, uh, you'll, uh, you'll tell me what to do, then?"

"Only if you want me to," Zayn said, and Liam finally looked up that that, his eyes dark and swimming with anxiousness under the dim lights. 

"Yes," he said, and Zayn nodded, because it was the most firm Liam had sounded since he'd picked him up from the bus station.

"I think it's time for bed," Zayn said, and Liam scrambled to his feet, then hesitated, like he was unsure if he was supposed to head to his room. Zayn gestured down the hall, and followed Liam, shutting off the light on his way out of the kitchen. "Don't forget to brush your teeth," he said, and disappeared into his own room.

A minute later, he heard the sink running in the bathroom, and he sat at his desk, and put his head in his hands. 

He'd only wanted some extra money for the gallery, and to secure his sisters' future. 

And now he had a well-mannered dog that was decently proficient at the English language, with broad shoulders, pouty lips, warm eyes, and a thick body with bulging biceps that made Zayn want to ruin him. With his mouth.

A fucking dog.


	3. Sunday

Zayn woke up around nine the next morning, which was far earlier than usual. At first, he wondered why he was awake, and then he realized it was because something that smelled better than any breakfast he'd ever eaten was drifting through his apartment.

He stumbled into the kitchen in only his underwear searching for something magical – he only found Liam standing over the stove, flipping what looked like an omelet made of an assortment of things that Zayn did not have in his fridge. "I saw your grocery list," Liam blurted when he sat Zayn leaning against the doorway. "I, uh, picked up everything on it."

"Thank you," Zayn said, smiling as he crossed his arms, watching Liam finish making the omelets and dish them onto two plates. 

"Coffee?" Liam asked shyly, and Zayn nodded, letting Liam fill two mugs. Zayn helped him carry the food and drinks to the table, and they sat across from each other, Liam blushing a bit as he ate. 

"I hope it was okay that I took the list – I noticed you didn't have a lot of food and my father always makes – made – me get up early. I went for a run since I don't have a key for the gym yet."

"I'll get you one today," Zayn assured him, digging into his omelet. "This is delicious – like, seriously, this is the best thing I've eaten since my mom's cooking. Where did you learn to cook like this?"

"My dad," Liam said, a blush creeping onto his cheeks. "He gave me a cook book when I was sixteen and said if I ever wanted to impress a woman, I'd have to learn to cook."

"Well anyone, male or female, would be impressed by this," Zayn insisted, and Liam flushed darker, the tips of his ears and his neck darkening. 

"I just followed a recipe," Liam murmured, but smiled brightly as Zayn went to put their dirty dishes in the sink and squeezed his shoulder when he walked by. "So, uh, today – what are we doing?"

"Well I'm going to put some clothes on," Zayn laughed, and Liam blushed, averting his eyes like he'd just noticed Zayn had inhaled his breakfast in his underwear. "I was going to get groceries but you took care of that for me, so how about we go to the mall and pick up some clothes for you?"

"Okay," Liam said, frowning down at his outfit – a pair of slacks and a different button up shirt. "I have clothes though."

"You're probably going to need something more comfortable than that if you're going to help out with the renovations at the gallery," Zayn explained, "and I feel like you didn't bring much else with you."

"Don't own anything else," Liam admitted.

"Good; we're going shopping," Zayn said.

Shopping with Liam turned into an ordeal and a half. It seemed easy enough at the beginning, when Zayn asked him to try on sweat pants that sat dangerously low on his hips and Henleys that made his muscles look deadly. It was easy enough at the beginning that they breezed through a few shops and Liam clutched his shopping bags to his chest like they were his new identity.

Zayn dutifully swiped his credit card at every store despite Liam's protests, saying his father had provided Zayn with more than enough money to clothe and feed Liam. 

Everything went smoothly; Liam was overjoyed with the new clothes, and beyond that, the way that Zayn smiled appreciatively every time he tried on something that Zayn picked out because it'd look spectacular stretched across his shoulders or slung low on his narrow waist.

And then they ran into Niall.

Niall came at Zayn like he always did, barrelling into Zayn's personal space and wrapping his arms around his middle, lifting him into the air and spinning him around sloppily. Zayn only laughed, but as he was set back on his feet, he noticed Liam standing tensely next to them. If he was a dog, he'd be baring his teeth with his hackles raised, but no matter how he behaved, he was still human.

So he stood there, arms crossed, muscles bulging, his whole body stiff as a board, legs spread defiantly like he was trying to defend his territory – if he was a dog, Zayn thought, he'd be growling. "Niall," Zayn said, carefully extracting himself from the Irish limbs, "This is Liam. Liam, this is my friend Niall." Zayn stressed the word friend and hoped that it would calm Liam. It didn't.

"Hi," Niall chirped cheerily, and when he reached out to shake Liam's hand, he winced – Zayn could see the squeeze; the way Niall massaged his fingers the minute he had his hand back. 

"Pleasure," Liam said, and Zayn frowned at his clipped tone.

"Did you guys want to grab some lunch? I'm starving," Niall said, glancing between Liam and Zayn awkwardly.

"Sure," Zayn agreed despite Liam still standing ramrod straight at his side, and the three of them headed to Niall's favourite sushi place in the mall. 

"Sushi alright?" He asked Liam quietly as Niall perused the menu. 

"Sushi's fine," Liam said stiffly. Zayn nodded, ordered for both of them, thankful that Niall was sufficiently distracted by the food to do nothing more than make small talk. Afterward, they wandered out into the afternoon sun and Niall trailed after them happily – a fed and watered Niall often meant an overenthusiastic Niall.

"Oh man, you should see this new game I just got," he said, babbling about video games and movies and the latest scent of air freshener he'd found. "You guys should come hang for a bit."

"No," Liam said flatly, interrupting Niall's chipper rant, and startling Zayn from his Niall-induced daze. 

"Liam," Zayn hissed under his breath, and the effect was instant. Liam deflated, his whole body sagging like he'd collapsed under the weight of Zayn's tone. His shoulders slumped and his head hung – he wouldn't look up from the sidewalk. Zayn hesitantly reached out, cuffed the back of his neck like he would a puppy that misbehaved, and squeezed. "We really should get home," he said to Niall, who looked between them, confused.

As Niall went off in a different direction, Zayn shoved Liam toward the car. Liam didn't lift his head once the entire silent ride back to the apartment, and when they walked through the door, shopping bags dumped to the floor, he stood there, looking scolded and thoroughly humiliated by Zayn – by Zayn saying his name.

As Zayn toed off his sneakers, he watched Liam sink to the ground, collapsing onto his shins. Liam finally looked up at Zayn, eyes wide and red, blinking rapidly like he was trying to hold back tears. "Sorry," he whimpered. "Sorry. Sorry, I'm so sorry."

At first, Zayn wanted to tell Liam to get up, to stand on two feet like the man he was, but as he approached the man kneeling on the ground, he sighed, words caught in his throat. Instead, he nudged Liam back into a sitting position, and started taking off his shoes for him.

"What?" Liam let out a soft whine, confusion evident on his face as Zayn placed his shoes on the rack and guided him over to the couch with a hand on the back of his neck. 

"I should get you a collar," Zayn said, though mostly to himself, as he thumbed the birthmark on Liam's neck. Liam flushed at that, his whole face turning a fiery red as he keened instinctually at Zayn's touch. "You'd like that?" Zayn asked, pulling back, a bit awed as Liam whined, leaning forward, seeking Zayn's touch.

"Yes," Liam said, his voice raw – he let out another whimper; it rumbled lowly from inside his chest, and Zayn sighed, letting him lay down across the couch, his head in Zayn's lap. 

"You should be nice to my friends; if you are, I'll get you a collar. A nice one – leather, maybe."

"Yes," Liam said again, nosing at Zayn's thigh, trying to press his head under Zayn's hand.

"It's impossible to stay mad at you," Zayn sighed, tangling his fingers into Liam's short hair – short, but just long enough to grab – and tugging a bit until he had Liam positioned the way he wanted. He started petting him then, gentle strokes where his fingers tickled Liam's scalp.

Liam practically purred under him, squirming and repositioning himself so that he was practically all in Zayn's lap, a wriggling mass of oversized lapdog that Zayn couldn't deny a thing to even if he tried.

"Niall's going to be around all the time," Zayn said as Liam finally settled, curling into Zayn's side, pressing up against the fingers that carded rhythmically through his hair. "You're going to have to get used to that. My other friends, they'll be around too."

Liam hummed in acknowledgement.

"We probably won't ever be alone at the gallery unless we're there in the mornings – I've got a loft there, and we all practically live there – me, Harry, Niall and Perrie. I sleep there sometimes, y'know. And what I'm trying to say is, what was that? Earlier?"

"Oh, um," Liam sighed, reaching up and removing Zayn's hand from his head, like he was trying to shake the feeling – like he had melted into a puddle of goo and was slowly trying to reassemble himself – away from Zayn. He backed off, curling up on the opposite corner of the couch.

"Didn't like him, uh, telling you what to do."

"He wasn't telling me what to do," Zayn frowned. "He was being friendly – making suggestions. We didn't have to have lunch with him, but I like to, because he's my friend, Liam. If you said you didn't want to, we could've done our own thing – he wouldn't have been mad."

"Oh." Zayn sighed, kicking his legs across the couch to nudge at Liam, and bring him back against Zayn's side. 

"No one tells me what to do, Liam. I don't like it when they do – that's just one of the reasons I left Springfield. Here, I have control of my own life, and I like it better that way."

"Is that what it's like?" Liam asked.

"Having control?"

"Having friends," Liam clarified, and Zayn nodded his head, setting a scrutinising gaze on him. 

"Yeah. You have to make some choices, and hope they're the right choices, but in the end, it's worth it when you can't get the idiots on your couch to stop tickling you, or something."

"It sounds nice," Liam said, frowning at his hands, timidly pushing his head into Zayn's lap again. Zayn carefully scrubbed at the back of Liam's neck, listening to the soft sigh against his thigh before pushing his fingers back into the hair. "I haven't had a friend in a long time – not since Louis moved away."

"Whatever happened to him?" Zayn asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

"The same thing that happened to you," Liam sighed. "He couldn't take it anymore – he left, and because he left, people started talking, and spreading all these nasty rumours, so he never went back. He's here, somewhere, in the city, I think. He used to call, once in a while, but I haven't heard from him in nearly a year now. Last we talked, he was working in a coffee shop, which isn't really glamourous, especially on the other side of thirty. We all used to think he'd make it if we ever left our shit town, but I'll bet he's happier now, even if he's not rich or famous."

Zayn nodded, and just kept petting Liam, feeling the skin shift under his fingers as he trailed his touch down past the hairline and rubbed at Liam's shoulders, scratching lightly at the skin. It was probably the most he'd heard Liam say at once since arriving at the apartment.

"Take off your shirt," Zayn said after a moment, and Liam looked up at him, eyes wide with curiosity as he slowly unbuttoned his shirt, peeling it off his shoulders like the best unintentional strip-tease that Zayn had ever seen, revealing his toned chest – washboard abs to match his bulging biceps. "Wanna pet you properly," Zayn insisted, and Liam, satisfied with the answer, dropped his shirt to the floor and flopped back into Zayn's lap.

The skin on Liam's back was soft under the pads of Zayn's fingers. He kneaded it for a bit, running his hands all over the expanse of new skin at his disposal, dragging his nails gently along the third time he let his hands cross the length of Liam's back, down to his slacks, and back up to the base of his neck.

Zayn wasn't sure what made him say it, but as Liam moaned lightly under his touch, he said, "You're so easy, aren't you? You just need someone to pat you on the head, tell you to stay, and give you a treat when you do." Liam hummed into his thigh for a moment, and then as if he took that moment to process what Zayn had said, his whole body locked up, each muscle tensing until he was scrambling upright, embarrassed, and swiping blindly for his shirt on the floor and clutching it to his bare chest, his posture rigid and tense.

"It's not a bad thing," Zayn said, tilting his head at Liam's panicked expression – all wide eyes and pursed lips. "Come back here." And Liam, like the well-trained puppy he was, immediately responded to the command, crawling along the length of the couch until he plonked right back down into Zayn's lap.

"Good boy." Zayn ruffled his hair a bit before tilting Liam's body forward to gently rub at his shoulders, sliding his hands smoothly along the planes of Liam's back again, until it became a full blown massage, with Liam soft as putty in his hands.

"S'not bad, right?" Liam asked, his voice cracking. "S'not bad, that I can't, like, make executive decisions for my father's company, or like, figure out what I want for dinner, or what shirt to wear tomorrow?"

Zayn looked down warmly at the man in his lap, the pet he'd always wanted, but never found the time to keep. Well, he had it now, he thought. "You want to wear one of those new Henleys tomorrow, you're going to eat rice and curry with me for dinner, and you've got nothing to do with your father's company, or Springfield anymore."

"Oh." Zayn smiled, and like he would to a dog, he pressed a small kiss into the juncture of Liam's neck, feeling the man relax into his arms.

"We should talk about this though," Zayn said, patting Liam on the hip to tip him off his lap before strolling into the kitchen to start dinner. "Not to scare you, or anything," he amended quickly, "but like – I don't know you? I don't know what you can't eat, what you like and what you don't. I don't know about medications, vaccinations, or if you have a schedule when you need to be walked- you didn't come with papers, y'know."

"I should've," Liam mumbled, pulling his shirt back on as he followed Zayn into the kitchen. "Dad could've written a book."

"But he didn't, so we're going to have to talk later," Zayn said, pointing to the fridge. "Get the chicken out please?" 

They made dinner together, silent except for the occasional direction from Zayn. He knew he couldn't let the calm last too long though, so when they sat down at the table, and Liam had a mouthful of food, Zayn said, "I need to know what we're doing."

Liam choked on his rice, sputtering for a minute before gulping down his glass of water and setting a steeling glare on Zayn, who only stared right back. And then he pushed back from the table, stood up, and dropped to his knees in front of Zayn, pushing his face into Zayn's thigh, working his head under Zayn's hand again.

"It's easier to talk like this," Zayn guessed, and Liam nodded against the rough fabric of Zayn's jeans. "So, do you maybe want to tell me what this is?"

"I don't know," Liam said after a brief pause, he he'd been working the words over and over in his mouth, testing them on his tongue. "I've never done this before."

"You like it," Zayn observed, and Liam nodded again. "You like being good?" He tried, and Liam nodded once more, burying his nose into Zayn's pants. "What else do you like? I want you to say it."

"Being told what to do," Liam said immediately. "I need directions, like, you can't just tell me to go off and get groceries, I need to know what groceries to get. Uhm, I like being touched, like this, but maybe like on the couch earlier, too."

"Okay," Zayn said, gently petting Liam on the head.

"Don't like being alone when I haven't got anything to do," Liam mumbled into Zayn's thigh, and he nodded, filing that piece of information aside for later. "Don't like sharing you." And that, that surprised Zayn. "You're mine," Liam insisted, possessive and firm. 

"Okay, yours," Zayn said slowly, his fingers never stilling in Liam's hair. "But you're mine, like, you're my pet, right?"

"Yes." No hesitance. Zayn thought that was good.

"And you're going to be a good dog for me, right?"

"Yes, so good," Liam whimpered, heat rising in his cheeks as he nosed at Zayn's thigh again. Zayn gripped his hair, and pulled his head back for a moment so he could look at Liam properly.

"Is it a sex thing too?" Liam froze again, his body stiffening, but Zayn soothed it best he could, running his hands along the base of Liam's neck and shoulders. "Just need an answer; won't look at you any different," Zayn assured him.

"Yes," Liam said in a small voice, barely audible, his jaw clenched tight. Zayn massaged his shoulders for a minute, trying to relax the man. 

"Good," he said, squeezing lightly. "I feel a bit less like a creep now."

"Oh." 

Zayn smiled. "C'mon, up. Finish your dinner, unpack your bags, and get some sleep tonight. I'll show you the gallery tomorrow and maybe you can help me figure out where to start with the renovations." Liam nodded, stretching as he stood, returning to his meal.

Zayn was almost asleep that night when his door creaked open and a dark figure slunk into the room. He felt the mattress shift and a solid weight curl around his feet. He sighed, reaching down blindly to grapple at Liam. "I shouldn't let you in my bed," he said, but pulled Liam up anyway, and positioned him properly under the blanket. 

Liam made a gentle noise of contentment, and Zayn let him snuggle close, ignoring the proximity of Liam's bare skin to his own. He'd deal with it in the morning.


	4. Monday

Zayn woke up to the smell of breakfast again. The spot next to him in the bed was clearly slept in, blankets rumpled and pillow repositioned to accommodate Liam. He thought about bringing it up, but that thought disappeared when he caught sight of the full breakfast waiting for him.

"You're a saint," he smiled, pressing a kiss to Liam's cheek and ruffling his hair as he poured two mugs of coffee. 

Liam interrupted their silence mid-way through the meal. "I made a list," he blurted. "Last night. I made a list of things I don't like to eat, and things I don't like to do, and things I'm allergic to. I think I got it all but I can always add to it if we need."

"Stick it on the fridge when we're done eating," Zayn told him, and Liam nodded, looking down at his plate. 

"Uh, about last night, was that, was that good?"

"No," Zayn said, and Liam sagged, frowning. "Ask me, next time," Zayn said, reaching across the table to rub Liam's wrist, the closest part of him. "I'm not mad, but I'd like a little warning next time. You're not actually a dog – you're allowed to talk." Liam looked up at him and blushed.

"So I can ask for things?"

"Always," Zayn assured him, squeezing his wrist lightly before dropping it. 

"Okay," Liam said, and returned his full attention to his breakfast. They were working it out, slowly but surely, whatever it was. 

"If you're good today at the gallery," Zayn said as he brought their plates to the sink, "We can pick up a collar and a leash for you tomorrow, okay?" Liam perked up at that, and if he were a dog, his tongue would be lolling out of his mouth, panting in excitement. Zayn could see the expression on his face, so like that of an enthused puppy that'd just gotten a new toy.

"Thank you," Liam said, and Zayn frowned.

"Haven't bought you anything yet. Like I said, you have to be good."

"I know, but not for that," Liam said, wrapping his arms around Zayn's waist, pressing Zayn forward into the sink as he leaned on Zayn's shoulder. "For acknowledging me back at your house in Springfield, for not saying no when my father asked, for not kicking me to the curb or saying I'm a burden, or a useless-"

"No," Zayn frowned, stopping Liam as he turned, reaching up to wrap his arms around Liam's neck. "Thank you for sharing this with me. I've always wanted a dog," Zayn smiled softly, and Liam positively glowed at that, pushing his nose down into the crook of Zayn's neck and sighing. "Such a good dog; perfect for me, yeah?"

"Yeah," Liam breathed, and that was that.

The gallery was surprisingly empty when Zayn and Liam arrived, which gave Zayn ample time to show Liam around. "This is the main area," he said, gesturing around the hall. There was a small reception desk with a telephone and laptop – incredibly minimalist. Most of the art on the walls were from students or young adults trying to make it. Zayn had a knack for finding the next big thing, or so the reviewers always said.

"Come on, you'll have time to look later – I want to show you the real gallery," Zayn said, urging Liam through the room. "The public toilets are through there. Two of 'em, and they're gender neutral, before you ask. The cool stuff is through here." 

Zayn pushed open the door that led to the back room and held it open, waiting for Liam to follow him through before closing it firmly behind them. "Whoa." Liam's jaw dropped as he looked around the back room.

It had, over the years, become Zayn's primary studio. There was a mess of easels and half-finished artwork to accompany the collection of other pieces he had to store for the gallery when they were not on the walls. 

"The private bathroom is through there," Zayn pointed to a door. "Don't get it confused with the closet on the other side, which, by the way, you shouldn't need to go into for anything. It's pretty much all paints and pencils and stuff." Liam nodded, looking up to the loft.

Zayn led him up the narrow metal staircase. "This is where we usually hang out," he said, flicking on the light as he approached the landing. The loft was cozy, furnished modernly as Zayn's own apartment with art decorating the halls. A pile of beanbag chairs littered the floor with blankets and pillows. There was an X-Box and PlayStation hooked up to a massive TV and a futon that folded up into a couch.

"So, uh, you're hoping to renovate this part?" Liam asked, and Zayn nodded, sitting down on the couch, pulling Liam down next to him. 

"I'm hoping to install some sort of light fixture to make this place brighter – my friend Niall's good with that kind of stuff so he's going to design it. I also need to paint the walls, and I want to put in a kitchenette so I can properly hang out here without having to get take out every time I want to eat something."

"What do you need me for?" Liam asked, and Zayn shrugged, looking at the furniture. 

"Moving the heavy stuff around, mostly. I've got to organize all the art down there," Zayn said, pointing off the edge of the loft. Some of those pieces are so big you need more than one person to move 'em, and God forbid I ask any of my friends to get their hands a bit dusty," Zayn rolled his eyes.

"I don't mind getting dirty," Liam said, then a beat later, flushed bright red like he'd just realized what he said. Zayn chuckled. 

"I'm sure you don't. Anyway, we should start by taking some measurements of this place – I've got a tape measure here somewhere, I'm sure." 

Zayn rifled through the closet and retrieved the tape measure, putting Liam to work. They were crouched over, Zayn taking down the measurements on his phone when Harry and Perrie burst through the doors, towing Niall behind them. They sounded like a herd of wild horses as they thundered up the metal stairs, their footfalls echoing through the room, effectively startling Liam.

So much, in fact, that when Zayn looked his way, he was backed into the corner, the tape measure forgotten on the floor at his feet, whole body trembling as he pushed himself back against the drywall like he was hoping it'd engulf him.

Harry pushed his nose into Zayn's neck in a hug as soon as he was within arm's reach. Zayn patted him awkwardly on the back until he pulled away, and was immediately replaced by Perrie and Niall on either side. Zayn sighed, and let the ambush happen. "Your face," Perrie giggled from under his arm, "You look like we don't do this every fucking day."

"You're scaring Liam," Zayn said, and three heads turned in unison to where Liam was still cowering in the corner, crouched on his heels, hands on the floor, looking positively alarmed. "Hey Liam, come here and meet Harry and Perrie." Liam, still trembling in the corner, stared wide-eyed at Zayn. He did step forward a bit though, unable to disobey Zayn's direction.

Once he realized they weren't going to lunge at him like they did to Zayn, Liam relaxed a bit – Zayn could imagine the tension leaving his shoulders, evaporating like smoke as he righted himself and politely shook both Harry and Perrie's hands. "Good to see you again, Niall," he added stiffly once he'd finished exchanging pleasantries with the other two. 

"You too, mate," Niall grinned. "Everything alright then? Adjusting to life in the city?"

"Something like that," Liam said, shifting awkwardly. 

"Niall," Zayn said, bringing the attention away from Liam, "Have you started on the light installation we were talking about?"

"Oh, yes, I drew up some plans," Niall said as Harry and Perrie disappeared to do their own work, pulling a folder out of his bag and dropping it onto the coffee table. He and Zayn sat on the couch, and Liam, after taking a second to size up the situation, curled up on the floor with a pillow, knees pulled to his chest, next to Zayn's feet.

As Niall discussed the lighting for the room, Zayn absentmindedly started stroking Liam's head, drawing a pleased hum from the man, eyes practically rolling into the back of his head from pleasure. Zayn kept the motion steady as he leaned over to take a better look at the diagrams Niall had drawn up.

"Is Liam asleep?" Niall asked, nearly two hours later when they had finally come to a conclusion that worked for both of them, a brand new, freshly designed project on the coffee table in front of them?

"Looks like it," Zayn said, looking to where his hand was resting gently on Liam's shoulder.

"Does he think he's a cat or something?" Niall asked, and Zayn looked up at his friend, before he shook his head.

"More like a dog. He's good at following orders – loyal, friendly when you don't startle him. I bet he'd enjoy playing fetch."

"Did a favour for your family and finally got that pet you've always wanted," Niall chuckled. "Only you, Zayn."

"You don't think it's weird?" Zayn asked, eyeing Niall hesitantly. 

"Oh, trust me, it's weird," Niall said, looking between Zayn and Liam. "It's been like, two days, and he's a bit like a puppy then, isn't he? Follows you around with endless adoration? Wants you all to himself?"

"Something like that," Zayn admitted.

"Well," Niall rolled his eyes. "It's a good thing you've always been weird, or I'd question it more. But you've always wanted a dog, and well, I'm not going to lie, he's cuter than a lot of the purebreds I've seen at the pet store." 

"Isn't he just?" Zayn chuckled, gently stroking behind Liam's ear. "C'mon Li, wake up. We're going for a walk to the store to pick up some things." Liam stirred, nuzzling into Zayn's ankle and tightening his grip around the pillow for a moment before he blinked sleepily, reaching up to rub at his eyes.

"Sorry," he mumbled at Niall, letting Zayn coax him into a sitting position.

"It's fine; we were being boring anyway," Niall smiled at him. "We could have let you sleep but we're going to the hardware store, and figured you might want to come."

"Yeah, sure," Liam agreed easily, standing and stretching, leaning casually into Zayn for a moment as if he just wanted to touch. "Just going to use the bathroom first," he mumbled, lumbering off down the stairs.

"He's bigger than you. Not, like, taller, really, you're the same height, but he's, uh, broader," Niall observed, watching Liam as he went. "Kind of weird?"

"I've always wanted a big dog," Zayn shrugged, and Niall laughed, head thrown back and eyes shut.

"Seriously. Only you, Zayn. Only you."

Bringing Liam to the hardware store turned out to be the best decision Zayn made all day. He was an immense help, hauling the wood for the shelving unit that Perrie was hoping to install, and carrying the paint buckets after Niall kept complaining about the handles digging into his hands, blistered from playing guitar and drums too much recently.

Thanks to Liam, they hadn't needed a hand in loading the car, and arrived back to the gallery with all the supplies they had on their list, and more. Liam then helped Perrie bring all the power tools out into the lot so she could start putting together the shelves she had envisioned, and helped Zayn bring the paint inside after moving all the furniture down from the loft.

As the sun set and Niall collapsed on a beanbag chair, surrounded by art pieces and wayward furniture from the loft, air reeking of drying primer, Zayn marked off a multitude of things from the to-do list he kept on the wall. "It's been a productive day," Harry commented.

"It has," Zayn agreed. "Want to go out for dinner?"

"Yeah, please," Perrie said, brushing saw dust from her jeans. "On me tonight, guys," she said, beckoning them out the door, allowing Zayn to lock up behind them. 

"Where to, Pez?" Zayn asked, casually wrapping his hand around the base of Liam's neck and squeezing lightly.

"I was thinking that Italian place you like," she said; Harry, Niall, and Zayn simultaneously rolled their eyes. 

"You just want to see Jade," Harry snorted, but none of them complained when they climbed into the appropriate vehicles and headed toward the familiar restaurant.

"So, now that we've started," Harry said after they'd been seated and Jade had run off with their drink orders, "What does our deadline look like? When do we need to be open again?"

"We have a show happening in two weeks," Zayn said, pulling out his phone to review the schedule. "We should be ready to go by then if we stay on schedule and nothing goes wrong with Niall's lights."

"Nothing ever goes wrong when I do electrical installations," Niall promised flippantly. "Liam, what are you getting? I'm thinking about the linguini because I haven't tried it yet."

"Uh," Liam frowned at his menu, which he hadn't even opened, staring helplessly at Zayn.

"He's getting the seafood fettuccine alfredo," Zayn answered for him, and Niall nodded.

"Great choice; it's fucking delicious," Niall said, peering over to where Harry was pointing out something on the menu to Perrie. "What about you guys? What are you getting?"

"Was I good?" Liam asked Zayn in a low rumble once Niall was sufficiently distracted by the other two at the table. Zayn tried not to react, but it was hard, with how Liam's lips were right at his ear, his breath tickling the scruff at Zayn's cheek.

"Do you like red?" Zayn asked, ignoring Liam's question.

"Red's nice," Liam said seriously after giving it some consideration. 

"Good," Zayn nodded, like he'd made his decision. "I know a website we can check out – I was thinking black and red, the red on the inside – leather – with a silver d-ring, and a matching leash."

"Oh," Liam gasped, eyes bright. "You'd do that for me?"

"Of course," Zayn said, ruffling Liam's hair. "You've been such a good boy," he said, a teasing lilt to his voice that had Liam smirking. 

"Gonna show me how good I was later?"

"Mm, if you finish your dinner," Zayn said, pulling away from Liam as Jade approached with their food.

After politely declining Harry's invitation to hang out at his apartment, Zayn brought Liam home. He replaced his jeans with a pair of sweat pants and peeled off his shirt before grabbing his laptop and sitting on the bed. When he realized Liam hadn't joined him, he rolled his eyes, patting the spot next to him.

Liam jumped onto the bed, shaking the mattress, automatically snuggling up to Zayn's side after rolling in three quick circles, like he was claiming his territory. "What do you think?" Zayn asked, pulling up a page with the collar and leash he'd described earlier to Liam, who leaned his chin against Zayn's shoulder and hummed in approval.

"Yes, please." 

"It'll look amazing on you," Zayn said matter-of-factly, placing the order with next-day delivery. "We'll have it soon, okay?"

"Okay," Liam said, snuggling closer to Zayn. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Zayn murmured, automatically shoving the laptop aside so Liam could crawl into his lap. They stayed like that, tangled together, for a long time, just listening to each other breathe. Zayn carded his hands through Liam's hair, and eventually pulled off his shirt like the previous night to slide his hand down the expanse of his back.

"Can we talk about what you asked me last night?" Liam asked nervously, and Zayn was careful not to still his hands as he looked curiously down at his puppy.

"What did I ask you last night?" Zayn frowned, trying to remember.

"Oh, um," Liam frowned, "You asked me if it was a sex thing."

"I did," Zayn confirmed. 

"Is it for you too?"

"It can be," Zayn said. "I've never done it before." Liam nodded, apparently satisfied with that answer, before pressing his hips forward against Zayn's thigh, so that Zayn could feel his erection through his jeans. "No," Zayn scolded him, and Liam pulled back abruptly, confused.

"But you said- I thought-"

"First, you need a safe word. I don't care if you don't think you need an out, I'm giving you one, before we fuck this up. Second, I need a list – like the one for food – things you aren't comfortable with doing. Third, I want-"

"I'm not going to write you a thousand word essay on my sexual history or whether I'm okay with sticking my tongue in your ass," Liam snapped, irritated, as he climbed off the bed and reached for the door, frowning. "I'll just go then, if you don't want-"

"Stay," Zayn demanded, trying his best to keep his voice steady and devoid of emotion, despite the fact that he was sure he could feel the blood burning in his veins as his heart leapt in his chest.

It was like a switch had been flicked within Liam. Like he'd been possessed by the need to follow Zayn's commands, he dropped to his hands and knees and while still facing the door, froze, his breath coming out in obvious nervous pants.

"Come."

He slowly crawled his way back to the bed, sitting on the floor with his chin on the mattress. 

"Up," Zayn said, pointing to the spot beside him where Liam had been before. Liam pulled himself onto the bed and settled back into the spot, frowning up at Zayn. "Good boy," Zayn praised him, running his hands through Liam's hair again until Liam had relaxed a bit under his touch.

"As I was saying," Zayn said, his fingers never leaving Liam's hair, "Third, I want to do this properly, and that means I want to kiss you first."

"Oh."

"Yeah," Zayn chuckled, closing one of his hands on the back of Liam's neck to guide him up Zayn's body, until he was straddling Zayn's waist and nervously licking his lips.

Zayn was gentle with him, kissing with a soft press of lips that tasted a bit like pasta sauce, allowing Liam to control the pace. Liam kissed back enthusiastic and slobbery, eventually licking into Zayn's mouth with his nimble tongue.

They kissed for a long time, exploring the inside of each other's mouths until they were panting and arching at each other instinctually. "Liam," Zayn said, breaking them apart. "Safe word. Please."

"Springfield," Liam mumbled shyly, averting his gaze.

"Okay. That's all I needed," Zayn said, pressing another soft kiss onto Liam's lips before flipping them over in one smooth motion. He ran his hands down Liam's chest, feeling the muscles jump under his touch, and the soft hairs press into the pads of his fingers. If Liam had a tail, he'd be wagging it, Zayn though amusedly.

Liam was clutching Zayn's hips with his own hands, squeezing gently, his fingers digging into the sharp bones and dipping under the waistband of Zayn's sweats. As Zayn leaned down to lick into Liam's mouth again, his fingers slipped to the button on Liam's jeans, carefully undoing them and peeling the offending article from Liam's body without breaking the kiss.

The favour was returned eagerly as Liam worked Zayn's sweat pants off his hips, until they were both in their boxers and pressed against each other. When Zayn pulled back from the kiss, he found Liam looking at him timidly, afraid to make another move.

"You were so good for me today," Zayn hummed, watching the smile on Liam's face grow until his eyes disappeared. "You're always so good for me – can I make it good for you?"

"Yeah, please," Liam said, as Zayn toyed with the top of his boxers. 

Zayn pressed a kiss to Liam's jaw before trailing his way down to Liam's chest, and taking one of his nipples into his mouth, sucking softly before biting down lightly. Liam bucked his hips up, gasping as Zayn's teeth grazed their way down his side, and soft kisses peppered his hipbones. 

He groaned when Zayn reached up, palming him lightly through the soft cotton boxers, feeling him swell under the touch. "Bet you're going to taste so good too," Zayn hummed, burying his nose into the space between Liam's legs, pressing a kiss to him above the cotton before taking the boxers off.

"So pretty," Zayn muttered, taking Liam in his hand, stroking his way up and down the length a few times, pressing the pads of his fingers lightly against the vein as he did, moving up to pull the foreskin back and brush his thumb into the precome collected at the slit.

Liam gave a weak whimper, eyes brimming with obvious anticipation as he watched Zayn gently spread his legs, and pressed a kiss to his hipbone, his thigh, his balls, and then the side of his swollen cock. Zayn dragged his tongue up the length, tasting salt and skin before he wrapped his lips around the tip, and went to work.

He knew his blowjobs weren't spectacular – nothing to write home about, surely. However, he had a good technique – they weren't awful, either. He slung an arm over Liam's hips to prevent him from fucking his mouth, and took his time, teasing him until Liam was a whimpering, panting mess below him.

Then Zayn moved quickly, shedding his own boxers as he crawled back up Liam's body, kissing him until he was sure Liam could taste nothing but himself on Zayn's tongue. Their erections bumped together, and Zayn wrapped one of Liam's large hands around both of them, letting Zayn's hands wander down Liam's chest, reaching down to squeeze his ass.

"Gonna fuck you so hard one day," Zayn hissed into Liam's ear as Liam's hand worked them both close to the edge. "Gonna fuck you until you can't walk straight; show you what a good dog you are. Then I'm gonna ride you, ride you until I can't-"

"Oh God," Liam cut off Zayn's slurred speech, coming without warning, gasping as he coated their stomachs, Zayn following seconds later with one quick look down at the mess between them.

It was Zayn who regained proper brain function first, so he slunk into the bathroom to clean himself up and search for a warm washcloth to wipe Liam off. "Good boy," he whispered into Liam's ear, wiping down his chest and stomach, pressing light kisses against Liam's neck, jaw, and cheek. 

He chuckled as Liam's dick gave an interested twitch, and shook his head, tossing the dirty cloth aside before curling up with his puppy again. "I'm exhausted – let's get some sleep, okay?" Liam didn't bother to verbalise a response, instead rolling over a few times to get comfortable, and wrapping his entire body around Zayn like an extra blanket.


	5. Tuesday

Zayn woke up before Liam, as dawn was poking its way through his curtains and illuminating his room in soft morning light and traffic sounds. At first, he couldn't figure out why he was so hot, but as he shifted, he realized Liam had spent the entire night draped over Zayn's back, effectively keeping him snug and warm.

"Everyone should have a Liam for winter," he mumbled nonsensically, shifting a bit to find a more comfortable position for his arm. As he did, Liam shifted too, slowly waking up as he buried his face into Zayn's shoulder and groaned. Zayn could feel Liam's morning wood pressing against the back of his thigh, smearing a wet trail of precome on his skin as Liam shifted again, nosing against his neck and jawline.

Zayn reached behind him, grabbing blindly until he found Liam's hand, guiding it in front of him, curling the fingers around his own morning wood as he pressed his ass back against Liam's. Liam started rutting lazily against his ass, cock sliding wetly between Zayn's cheeks in perfect rhythm with the hand working his own.

It was easy for Zayn to lift his own leg up and give Liam better access, jerking his hips against Liam's until they were both groaning, Liam's face pressed securely into the back of Zayn's neck, his breath fanning across the sweaty skin. 

Liam grip on him was just shy of too tight, the perfect amount of pressure that Zayn could never quite figure out when jacking off himself. He thought the rough texture of Liam's palms only added to it, and as he thrust up into the circle of Liam's grip, he couldn't help the low moan that escaped his lips.

"Fuck," Liam choked out, the first to speak. His voice was rough and raw, and the profanity was accompanied by a low growl that Zayn felt shiver through his entire body. Liam's hand dropped off Zayn's cock in order to grab his thigh, pulling apart his legs even wider before he was nudging his own erection up against Zayn's hole, pressing the wet tip to the twitching ring of muscle there before he came, a gasp ripping from his like air from a popped balloon.

Zayn let Liam flop down onto his back, and hovered over him as Liam's eyes raked over his body hungrily. He swiped a handful of Liam's come from between his legs, using it to smooth his way along as he jerked himself off roughly, watching the way Liam licked his lips, eyes trained to Zayn's dick.

"Gonna come, gonna… Gonna come on your face," Zayn said, and Liam just smiled up at him brightly, mouth slightly parted, ready for it. If Zayn hadn't been on the edge already, that facial expression would've done it for him. 

Afterward, Zayn kissed Liam, slow and relaxed, before using his tongue to tidy up the mess he'd left on Liam's face best he could. "Always so good for me," Zayn hummed into the kiss, and Liam, he just smiled so wide Zayn was sure his face would crack.

Despite waking up early, they were last at the gallery, delayed by lazy kisses between making breakfast, taking showers, and finding clothes to wear. "Sorry we're late," Zayn said, rushing past Perrie in the parking lot and ushering Liam inside the building before him.

"Good, you're here," Harry sighed. "Niall was about to try and get in the paints if you didn't show up, and we all know that we shouldn't let Niall paint."

"I resent that," Niall bellowed from below the loft where he was working on what looked like a giant nest of wires.

"I resent your face," Harry grumbled under his breath. "Let's paint?"

"Yeah," Zayn agreed, taking off his hoodie and tossing it aside. "Hey Liam, could you bring us the paints while we do up the sketch?"

Once Harry and Zayn had transferred their design to the wall, an abstract piece to be filled in with various colours, Zayn beckoned Liam over. "Come." Liam came. Zayn pushed a roll of painter's tape in his hands, instructing him to follow the lines on the wall with tape. "Good boy," Zayn mumbled, petting Liam once before backing away.

"Didn't know you got a dog," Harry said offhandedly as he and Zayn leaned against the railing, watching Liam work. 

"Didn't mean to," Zayn shrugged. "It's fine though; I wanted one anyway."

"He's well behaved," Harry observed as Liam carefully stuck tape to the wall. "Good at following directions too."

"He is," Zayn beamed proudly. "He was well trained when I got him."

"Are you fucking?" Harry asked suddenly, looking at Zayn curiously.

"Yeah," Zayn sighed, fumbling with the pack of smokes in his pocket. Harry followed him outside, watching as Zayn lit up, letting the familiar feeling wash over him. It'd been a few days since he'd had a smoke – wanted a smoke. Since Liam had arrived, he realized. "Is it weird that we're fucking?"

"No, I mean, I'd be a hypocrite if I said anything about being gay, right?" Harry snorted. "I've been seeing a guy; it's pretty serious. Actually, I think I'd like to bring him by sometime later this week, if that's cool."

"If you trust him," Zayn shrugged. "The place is kind of a mess though – thought you'd want to wait until it was finished up."

"I've waited nearly two years to introduce him to you and your dumb gallery," Harry laughed. "I don't think he'll mind the mess."

They returned inside just as Liam was finishing up with the tape, admiring his work with a satisfied smile. "Thanks, Liam," Harry said, smiling brightly at the wall. "Er, can I," he looked at Zayn for permission, who nodded. "Good boy," Harry said, ruffling Liam's hair, and Liam looked startled for a second before he grinned that dumb grin of his, where his eyes disappeared into his face, and Harry smiled, unable to contain his own happiness.

"He's adorable, isn't he," Zayn chuckled, and Harry nodded in agreement. 

"You can take a break, or go see if Niall or Perrie need help if you want," Zayn said, cracking open a can of red paint. "Harry and I are probably going to be painting for the rest of the day." Liam nodded and disappeared down the stairs.

They did indeed paint the rest of the day. The sun had set before Zayn knew it, and Perrie was calling them down for the pizza she'd ordered. "It looks good," Niall commented, peeking up the stairs at the paint drying on the walls of the loft. 

"It does," Perrie agreed, smiling. "I've just got to sand the shelves, and they should be done when you're done the wall. We've ordered the large appliances too, and they should be coming in at the end of the week, after Niall's installed the light fixture and rewired the internet."

"You're a doll, thanks," Zayn smiled brightly as they all crowded around the pizza. Liam looked at him, waiting patiently as Zayn looked around the boxes. "Pepperoni," he told Liam, who nodded, happily reaching into the appropriate box.

"Is he always like that?" Perrie asked a bit later, when they were all lounging on beanbag chairs, listening to some new electronic band after Niall had hooked his iPod up to the in-house sound system.

"Like what?" Zayn asked.

"Always looking at you for permission – or like, instruction," she shrugged. "A bit too much like a dog, innit?" Zayn chuckled, shaking his head.

"I think that was the idea, babe." Perrie laughed then, shaking her head, fighting a smile that threatened to stretch across her face.

"I should've known," she said, biting her lip. "But I guess with you, we never really do know, do we?"

"I don't think I know either, most of the time," Zayn laughed, and then they were howling, rolling off the beanbags onto the cold floor as the other three frowned down at them.

"Plebes," Harry snorted, kicking Perrie lightly in the side. She grabbed him by the leg, and pulled him onto the ground with her and Zayn. Niall flopped down next to them on his own accord, laughing as he did.

"You guys are silly. What're you doing up there still, Liam?" Niall asked, and Liam looked hesitantly at Zayn who smiled warmly at him.

"Come here, boy," he said softly, and Liam did as he was told, flopping solidly across Zayn's stomach. "Oof," Zayn groaned, as Liam nuzzled into his side.

"You asked for it," Perrie snorted, watching as Harry reached out to absentmindedly pet Liam's head.

"I love you guys," Zayn blurted suddenly, caught up in the moment, and Niall, Perrie, and Harry groaned simultaneously.

"Sap," Niall sighed, but then added, "Love you too, fucker."

It was nearing midnight when they finally locked up the gallery and went home. As Zayn checked his mail, he was pleased to find an inconspicuous brown package with his name and address on it. He hustled Liam soundlessly into the bedroom before ducking into the bathroom to open it.

The items were as promised; simple, high-quality leather, black on the outside, red on the inside. The d-ring was solid and shiny, catching in the dim lights of the bathroom. The leash felt sturdy in his hand, but Zayn had never held a leash before – he wasn't sure what it was supposed to feel like.

"Liam?" Zayn pushed the door of his room open, thinking about the empty bed in what used to be his second studio, and wondering if he should just bring Liam's stuff into his room to reclaim the space. Then again, he thought, if anything went wrong, he'd want Liam to have somewhere to hide.

"Hmm?" Liam was buried in Zayn's blankets, only a tuft of hair poking out on the pillow. 

"I've got something for you," Zayn said, sitting on the edge of the bed, smiling at the lump of blankets. 

"Oh?"

"Yeah," Zayn said, gently pulling back the sheets until Liam's bare neck and shoulders were exposed along with the sleepy smile on his face. "Look what came in the mail!" 

Liam peered at the items in Zayn's hand, and recognition spread across his face in a warm smile and nervous bite at his bottom lip. "May I?" Zayn asked, and Liam moved eagerly across the bed, pushing himself into a sitting position before nosing his way into Zayn's neck again.

Zayn rubbed his neck first, feeling the soft and pliant skin underneath his hands, thumbing the birthmark a bit before placing a gentle kiss there. Then he reached up with the collar, wrapping it around Liam's neck, and closing the clasp on the back.

"Is that good? Not too tight?" Zayn asked. Liam shook his head, smiling brightly, and Zayn let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "You look so good," he mumbled, stroking Liam's bare shoulder. "I'll get some tags made up tomorrow, okay?" Liam nodded eagerly, head bobbing, and Zayn grinned, nudging him back into the bed.

"Sleep?" Liam asked him curiously, eyes darting back and forth between Zayn and the bed.

"I'm tired, Li," Zayn admitted, gathering the boy in his arms. "But if you're good tonight, tomorrow-" Zayn was cut off with a throaty growl, as Liam bowled him over, hovering over him with his knees on either side of Zayn's hips, hands on either side of his head. "Liam?"

"Wanna be good," Liam whimpered, dropping his body down on top of Zayn's. "Wanna be so good; can I just-" he gasped, rutting up uselessly against Zayn's hip, and Zayn groaned, feeling the length of Liam's erection drag across his jeans. 

"Yeah, fuck, yeah, okay," Zayn moaned, reaching down to quickly yank his jeans off. Liam snaked his hands up Zayn's shirt, helping him tug it over his head before attacking his collarbone with kisses. "No," Zayn hissed, and Liam frowned, pulling back.

"What?"

"I told you," Zayn said, trying to ignore Liam's hips digging into his own. "Do it properly – kiss me first, okay?"

"Okay," Liam said, happier when he realized Zayn wasn't actually telling him to stop. He leaned in, pressing a light kiss to Zayn's lips, letting Zayn deepen it at his own pace.

"Good," Zayn hummed after they finally pulled away, and gripped Liam by the hips, pulling him on top of Zayn's body – Liam went easily, shifting until he was between Zayn's spread legs. "You like the collar, huh?" Zayn chuckled as he reached up to tug lightly on the d-ring with a finger, bringing Liam's lips back to his own.

"Love it," Liam breathed, his hands never stilling as they roamed Zayn's chest. Slowly, Liam started thrusting against his hip again, rutting up against him until Zayn helped him out of his underwear, before hastily removing his own. 

They kissed for a long time, cocks sliding wetly against each other, with Liam panting breathlessly into Zayn's mouth, his body tight with need. "Want you to fuck me," Zayn groaned, and Liam groaned with him, hips jerking together on their own accord.

"Lube?' Liam managed to choke out, to which Zayn waved lazily at his nightstand. Liam scrambled his way into the drawer, digging through it until he found the promised bottle, clicking off the lid and coating his finger liberally. 

At the first finger, Zayn groaned in relief – it'd been a while, a long gap between his last one night stand with a man and Liam. "Keep going, c'mon," he urged Liam on, until he was three fingers deep in Zayn, panting against his lips as he brushed his finger over Zayn's prostate repeatedly. "I'm ready, c'mon," Zayn groaned, reaching up to bring Liam closer to him, if possible, and crush a kiss to his neck.

Liam carefully pulled his fingers out with a soft popping noise before he frowned, pulling Zayn's face out of his neck. "Is it okay if I don't, if we don't use a condom? I mean, I'm clean – haven't done this with anybody in a long time, and I want to make you _mine_."

Zayn moaned, dragging Liam into a positively filthy kiss. "You're gonna kill me," he groaned, nodding. "No condom. Yours, I promise. Mark me up if you have to." Liam brightened at that, his eyes practically sparkling in the dark room.

As Liam repositioned Zayn so that he could press his cock against Zayn's hole, he ducked down, nipping at Zayn's collarbone, leaving a mouth-shaped bruise as he slowly slid in. "Fuck, you feel so good," Zayn groaned, and Liam responded by bringing his teeth up to Zayn's neck, sucking and biting until he was sure there'd be a mark left there too.

"Good," Liam echoed, and then all words were lost in Zayn's throat as Liam started thrusting into him in earnest. The sound of skin slapping together, breathy pants and gasps filled the room as Liam fucked him, one hand holding himself up, the other raising to touch the collar around his neck. 

"Liam, harder, come on," Zayn groaned, letting Liam properly plow him into the mattress. Zayn reached up, wrapping a hand around himself, jerking off fast and desperate – Liam's thrusts stuttered as he gasped, leaning over to kiss Zayn full on the mouth, his tongue lapping sloppily at Zayn's.

"Zayn, I can't… I have to… Inside you, please," he begged nonsensically against Zayn's lips, and Zayn's breath hitched, gasping as he accidentally tightened his grip around himself.

"Yes, oh god, yes."

"Zayn," Liam whined, voice nearly gone with desperation, like he was waiting for Zayn to tell him- Oh. He was waiting for Zayn to tell him when.

"Come inside me," Zayn demanded, and that was all he could say as his vision went white, his orgasm slamming into him like a tanker truck going top speed. Liam was gasping, his whole body trembling above Zayn when he came back to himself, gasping, and then Zayn felt it – warm and wet and _Liam_ filling him up.

"Zayn, Zayn, Zayn," Liam gasped uselessly, pushing his face into Zayn's neck as he rode out his orgasm, his hips stuttering erratically.

"The first time you say my name since high school, and you have to say it like _that_ ," Zayn groaned, pulling Liam in for a slow and passionate kiss as soon as they were both coherent again. 

"I'm sorry," Liam said, blushing as he slowly pulled out of Zayn. "I didn't mean to not say much, I just don't know what to say a lot of the time."

"Wait," Zayn sighed. "Let me clean up first – then we'll have this discussion." Liam nodded, pushing his face into the pillow, cheeks red, like he was embarrassed about how they were naked and sweaty on the bed together. Zayn sighed, and quickly walked into the bathroom to clean up best he could.

When he returned to the bedroom, he found Liam curled in on himself, wrapped up in a cocoon of blankets looking terrified. The sheets were kind of gross, but Zayn ignored it, crawling under the blanket. Almost immediately, Liam uncurled and wrapped himself around Zayn instead, legs tangling together, arms falling around his middle.

"I like it when you say my name," Zayn said, gently running his hand through Liam's hair, petting him, soothing him, hoping he was comfortable. "I like it when you say you're mine, and that you belong to me, and if that's wrong, I’m sorry, but I'm glad that the first time you said my name in so long, you were saying it because you were balls deep inside me."

"Oh," Liam murmured.

"Uh-huh," Zayn smiled, leaning in to press a gentle kiss against Liam's lips. "And I like that you look absolutely gorgeous in this," he added, letting go of Liam's head to touch the collar. "It still feels okay? Not too tight or anything?"

"Feels amazing, Zayn," Liam hummed, closing in for another kiss.

"Don't know words to tell you how it feels," Liam frowned, nuzzling into Zayn's neck – Zayn tightened his grip at Liam's neck, revelling at the feeling of the other man pressed so close to him. "But I feel like I belong to you."

"Good," Zayn said. "That's so good."


	6. Wednesday

Zayn woke up with a mouth on his dick, which would've been slightly more concerning a week ago. As it was, Liam between his legs was not concerning at all, and he choked out a moan, automatically thrusting into the warm, wet heat of Liam's mouth before he fully gained consciousness.

As Liam worked magic with his tongue, Zayn fumbled around blindly next to the bed until his hand closed around the leash. With Liam between his legs, it was easy to reach down for the collar and clip the leash securely in place. Zayn wrapped it around his hand and wrist, and tugged Liam up his body. Liam's mouth slid off his cock with a moist pop, and Zayn shuddered at the sight of the spit trailing between the tip of his dick and Liam's lips.

"Such a good dog," he murmured against Liam's lips, reeling him in close with the leash. "I'm going to fuck you now," Zayn added, almost as an afterthought. Liam nodded enthusiastically, and a helpless smile crossed Zayn's face as he reached back into the drawer for the lube. "On your hands and knees, Liam."

Liam did as he was told, scrambling on the sheets to get into the position. He looked excited, a wriggling mess of anticipation as Zayn slicked up his fingers and slowly pressed the first one in. Liam mewled at the pressure, bucking back against Zayn's finger with every thrust.

"Stay still," Zayn said, but it did nothing to deter Liam, wriggling his ass in the air until Zayn finally pushed a second finger past the rim. "Goddamn it, Liam. I told you to stay still," Zayn hissed, tugging on the leash. Liam's head jerked up from the pressure, and he gasped, mouth open, tongue hanging out. He stilled. "Good dog," Zayn said, patting his ass with the hand holding the leash briefly before inserting a third finger.

Once Zayn deemed Liam sufficiently stretched, he slowly removed his fingers and took his time tying the leash tightly around the bedpost as Liam whined and whimpered from the bed, ass in the air like a regular porn star. "Hurry up," he begged, and that-

"Was that a command?" Zayn asked, eyes narrowed as he knee-walked across the bed back to Liam. He didn't even think about it as he smacked Liam across the ass, the sound echoing loudly throughout the room. Liam gasped and stilled as Zayn watched the red handprint blossom across Liam's pale skin.

"No," Liam trembled, pushing his ass closer to Zayn, gasping, hole twitching, waiting. "C'mon, please-"

"Again?" Zayn asked. Liam nodded into the pillow, so Zayn used one hand to scratch his way down the broad expanse of Liam's back and the other to wind up and land another smack on his other ass cheek. His skin pinked beautifully, blossoming under Zayn's touch, marks from Zayn's nail sparked on the skin of his back like contrails in the sky.

"Zayn," Liam groaned, his voice cracking mid-way through Zayn's name as Zayn finally pressed his cock against Liam's backside. Slowly but surely, Zayn pushed into Liam until he bottomed out, hands clutching tightly at Liam's hips. He was sure there'd be finger-sized bruises there in a few hours.

Zayn slowly shifted, moving his body until he covered Liam's back, trying to gage the comfort level of the quivering man beneath him. When he thought Liam had better adjusted, he leaned over, brushing his lips against Liam's ear and said, "I'm going to move now."

"Yes," Liam whimpered, and Zayn started slowly pulling back before his hips jerked on their own and he started thrusting into Liam properly. He was positively throbbing; aching for some sort of release as he pounded into Liam again and again, revelling in the feeling of him, of being inside him. 

"Think you can come like this?" Zayn asked, his breath ghosting across Liam's shoulders. "Think you can come from just my dick inside you?" And Liam gasped, shaking in Zayn's arms as Zayn continued to whisper against his neck. "You're such a good dog, so good for me – so fucking beautiful, Liam. So well behaved; just let me take care of you. Let me feed you, and walk you, and pet you, and show you off to all my friends-" Zayn cut himself off with a deep moan as he came, but Liam was one step ahead of him, already collapsing on the bed, dick twitching uselessly against his stomach, spent and sensitive.

Liam visibly winced as Zayn pulled out as carefully as he could. "Stay," he demanded, moving into the bathroom to clean himself up and returning with a warm washcloth to wipe Liam off. As he did, Liam turned his head and looked at him, question hiding in his eyes. "What is it?" Zayn asked.

"You'd feed me?" Liam asked, and Zayn looked at him in awe, taken aback.

"Yeah, if that's what you want," he said, and Liam smiled brightly, eyes shining, and Zayn knew that whatever it was that Liam wanted, with a face like that, he'd get it from Zayn in a heartbeat. 

"Breakfast?" Liam asked, and Zayn chuckled. 

"Only if you cook, babe. You probably don't want to eat anything I've made."

"I can do it while you shower," Liam said, trying not to wince as he sat up, and mostly failing, his face giving him away. Zayn sighed, scooting over on the bed to run his hands through Liam's hair and press a kiss to his cheek.

"No, take it easy, we can grab something on the way to the gallery. I'll be quick – just gotta wash and do my hair – then you can use the shower."

Zayn was quick in the bathroom, by his standard. He went through his morning routine with only one thing on his mind – Liam. More specifically, Liam tangled in his leash, tripping over his own feet, overgrown-puppy Liam, waiting for instructions.

"I made that list," Liam said when Zayn stepped out of the bathroom, freshly clean and shaven, hair done up into his usual quiff. 

"What list?" Zayn asked, digging around his dresser for his favourite cologne.

"The list of things I don't want to do in bed," Liam clarified, pointing to the drawer where Zayn kept his lube. "It's in there."

Zayn opened the drawer and as promised, the list was there, folded into a square and nestled between the nearly empty bottle of lube and a pair of handcuffs. As Liam disappeared into the bathroom to take his shower, Zayn unfolded the list and read it thoroughly.

Most of it consisted of weird fetish things Zayn wouldn't have considered anyway, including watersports, sucking on toes, hooker role play, threesomes or sharing of any sort, cross-dressing, infantilism, and anything involving blood. Which, okay, Zayn wouldn't have gone for any of those things at all.

"Is it okay?" Liam asked anxiously, wandering back into the bedroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist. Zayn frowned. 

"Yeah, it's fine; can't say I'm into those things anyway. You should probably go put some clothes on though-" He paused, standing to rifle around his closet. "This will probably fit you."

"Oh," Liam said, startled as Zayn tossed him a clean pair of boxers, jeans, and t-shirt. "I mean, my stuff's just in the next room. I can just grab-"

"Wear it," Zayn said, and silently, Liam dropped his towel, and tugged the clothes on without another word. "You look good in my clothes," Zayn said after, pressing a kiss to Liam's cheek as found a pair of shoes for himself. "Now let's go." 

"Okay," Liam said, scurrying for his own shoes before following Zayn out the door.

"I don't mind," Zayn said, as they got into the car, "If you move your stuff into my room. You won't be sleeping anywhere else anyway. The other room, it'll still be there if you need it though."

"Yes, okay," Liam said eagerly with a smile that lit up his entire face. Zayn sighed, trying to keep his focus on the road instead of the violent crimes he'd heedlessly commit in order to bring that smile out.

They stopped at a small patisserie to pick up croissants for breakfast; as promised, Liam ripped off small chunks of the pastry and handfed Liam, listening to the soft noises of pleasure Liam made with every bite. "Good boy," Zayn murmured, trailing soft kisses along Liam's face and neck before eating his own breakfast.

They also stopped by the mall in order to get tags engraved for Liam with his name, Zayn's name, address, and phone number. Zayn picked out a heart shaped one with red on one side and silver on the other.

"Gonna look so pretty right here," Zayn said softly, reaching up to touch the collar, and Liam shivered, smiling so wide Zayn thought his face may crack. 

It was nearly two in the afternoon by the time by the time they arrived at the gallery, pushing through the doors to the studio in the back to watch Harry, Perrie, and Niall assemble the elaborate string of lights Niall had created and install the shelving unit that Perrie had built.

"This place is going to look wicked once the kitchen is all fitted – the fridge and stove we got are bright silver, and all we have to do is bring my friend Josh in to fix up the plumbing a bit and we'll have a gorgeous sink too. A real proper kitchen unit," Niall grinned excitedly.

"Get the lights done first," Perrie sighed, smacking Niall lightly upside the head, moving her tools aside since she'd finished installing her shelves. "You're being slow again."

"Fuck off," Niall said, but it was with a cheery smile, so Perrie just rolled her eyes and reached out to help him untangle the next series of wires from the pile.

Later that afternoon they took a break to admire the new lights and shelves by flopping down on the beanbags in the studio. "I should probably get around to organizing these canvases," Zayn laughed, reaching down to pet Liam absentmindedly. 

Liam had walked around on his new leash all day, never more than an arm's length away from Zayn, and none of their friends had even batted an eyelash at it. Now, Harry was admiring the leather lead in Zayn's hand. "That's gorgeous," he said. "It must've been expensive."

"Worth every penny," Zayn told him, looking fondly down at Liam who was curled up at his feet. 

"So, uh, my friend is coming by shortly," Harry said, looking at his phone. "I'm going to meet him outside, so uh, yeah."

"Cool," Niall said, reaching for the bag of chips on the ground at his feet. 

"Cool," Perrie echoed, pulling out a compact to check her make up. "I think I got sawdust permanently in my hair."

"Probably, with all the woodwork you do," Niall said around a mouthful of Doritos. He stretched a leg out and sighed, sinking deeper into the chair. "I wish I had my guitar."

"You told us not to let you bring your guitar in until we were done renovating," Perrie said pointedly, and while Niall pouted, Zayn leaned over to press a kiss into Liam's hair. 

"You good, boy?"

"Always," Liam beamed. "Anything I can do to help later?"

"These canvases are going to need moving eventually," Zayn said, and both Niall and Perrie jerked their heads toward him.

"You mean you're finally going to clean up this mess?" Perrie laughed, as Niall shook his head.

"I won't believe it until I see it."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Zayn rolled his eyes. 

Harry returned fifteen minutes later; he pushed open the door hesitantly, and pulled a man out from behind him. Zayn's jaw would've dropped if his energy wasn't focused on gripping the leash, drawn taut in his hand from the way Liam sat up ramrod straight like he'd been electrocuted.

Louis Tomlinson walked into the room, relaxed and smiling until he saw Zayn and Liam. Then he stopped with an unreadable expression on his face, and stared.

"You're not dead," were not the first words Zayn was expecting out of his mouth, but they came, cutting through the silence like a harsh light in a dark room. Then Louis turned his attention to Liam who sat on his haunches, stock still, spooked by Louis' presence.

"Not yet," Zayn said, trying to draw Louis' attention of the leash and collar. It didn't work.

"Liam, what the fuck are you doing? Get off that floor- what the fuck are you wearing? Is that a collar? What the hell did this sick fuck do to you? Does your dad know you're here-"

"Out," Zayn demanded coldly, cutting off Louis' rant as Liam flinched, curling up closer to Zayn, trying to hide his bulk behind Zayn's legs, which would've been funny if it weren't for the circumstances. Zayn reached down and rubbed a comforting hand over Liam's shoulders, trying to calm his breathing without breaking his eye contact with Louis.

"Liam, are you listening to this guy? What the fuck are you doing just sitting there?" There was a muffled squeak as Harry clapped his hand over Louis' mouth, looking both horrified and apologetic, waggling his eyebrows hilariously at Zayn who raised one in return.

"Stop talking with your eyebrows," Perrie said as Niall snorted, his bag of chips forgotten as he'd watched the scene unfold. "Zayn's right though," she added. "If he's going to scare Liam, he shouldn't be here."

Liam winced, jerking his head around to look at Perrie as if to say she didn't have to defend him, but Perrie shook her head, silencing him with her steely eyes before he could open his mouth. "She's right," Niall drawled, slow and unwaveringly, looking at Harry who still had his hand over Louis' mouth. "Maybe you guys should go outside, and uh, get some air."

"I'll take him out," Zayn said, beckoning Harry over with a finger. "I think we have some catching up to do." Harry looked nothing but confused as he nodded, crossing the room to take Liam's leash in his hand and fill Zayn's vacated spot. Automatically, his hand reached down to find Liam and run a comforting touch through his hair.

"I won't let him out, if that's what you want," Harry said, and Zayn nodded, though he had the feeling Liam wasn't exactly straining to talk to Louis as it was. 

"Well," he sighed, turning to Louis. "Come on then," he led the way outside the studio into the main portion of the gallery where he leaned against the reception desk, arms crossed. "What gives you the right to walk into my home and yell at my dog?"

"Excuse me?" Louis sounded scandalized as he glared at Zayn, pushing his way up into Zayn's face, and Zayn would've been fazed if Niall, Harry, and Perrie hadn't been all up in his personal bubble for years. "What gives you the right to keep Liam on a leash? His dad left him in your care and you fucking cage him-"

"I don't see a cage," Zayn commented. "He can come and go if he wants. It was his decision as much as it was mine, which, by the way, is none of your business. What we do is our prerogative, and if it isn't yours, the least I ask is you are respectful of that when under my roof."

"You've changed, Malik," Louis observed, backing up. "You used to be so quiet."

"Being quiet doesn't get you too far in the city," Zayn responded, pushing off the desk and pushing himself back into Louis' space. "It's been nearly ten years; I had to move on with my own life eventually."

"And so does Liam," Louis insisted. "He grew up, Zayn. He's not a fucking child – not a fucking pet!" 

"First," Zayn said, eyes narrowing, "Growing up isn't moving on. He was doomed to rot in Springfield because there wasn't anyone there to take care of him. Second, have you even considered asking him if he's a pet? Because I get the feeling that his answer would be distinctly different from what you think."

Louis backed off then, his lips pursed. "Fine, I'll ask him." He stormed back for the door, bursting into the back room again before Zayn could stop him. From behind Louis, Zayn watched Liam wince and curl into himself. 

It was natural for Zayn to cross the room quickly and take the leash back from Harry before placing a warm hand on Liam's back. "Louis just wants to talk to you," he murmured into Liam's ear. "He's worried about you and wants to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine," Liam whined at Zayn. "You know this."

"I do, but Louis doesn't, and if I remember correctly, he's a bit of a stubborn one, so you'll probably have to tell him yourself." Liam sighed; Zayn knew it was true and that Liam couldn't deny it. 

"Liam," Louis' voice boomed loud through the eerily silent room. Liam turned to Zayn for permission. Zayn nodded once, and Liam then turned his attention to Louis.

"Yes?"

"Why are you on a leash?"

"I want to be," Liam said tightly, and Louis stared, looking a bit like someone had put salt in his tea. 

"Now that that's settled," Niall said, cutting through the tension in the room. "I think Perrie and I have something to do, uh, outside."

"With a chainsaw," Perrie added, grabbing Niall as the two of them vacated the room at lightning speed.

"Well, if you could be a little more obvious," Harry sighed, running his hands through his hair. "What's going on here, Lou? Zayn?"

"We went to high school together," Zayn volunteered, since Louis was still gaping at Liam like he was a zoo exhibit. "We grew up in the same town – Louis and Liam used to be the best of friends in high school."

"I do remember him mentioning a good friend he lost touch with named Liam," Harry said, trying to ignore the stare down happening in front of his eyes. 

"Small world," Louis threw in his two cents without breaking eye contact with Liam, who whimpered and tried to tuck himself behind Zayn's legs again. Zayn reached down to pet Liam, frowning when Liam leaned into the touch without taking his eyes off Louis.

"So, uh, how did you guys meet?" Zayn asked, looking between Harry and Louis.

"Oh, Lou works at the coffee shop I like to visit," Harry grinned. "He's a manager there and let me hang out more than I should have. We just started talking and hit it off one day."

"I'm happy for you," Liam piped up from behind Zayn's legs. Zayn sighed and patted the spot next to him on the beanbag, and Liam hopped up obediently, though the seat was clearly sized for one person, not two full grown men. With Liam settled in his lap, it was easier for Zayn to grip his hips and keep him calm and relaxed.

"Thanks, Liam," Louis said nervously. "So, like, I talked to your dad when I tried to call you and found out you'd come to the city – how did you end up with Zayn?"

"Liam's father is paying me a large sum of money to keep him," Zayn explained, and Louis raised an eyebrow. "My sister is buying his father's company – it would be in poor reflection of the business to have his only son so negligent of company matters. Unfortunately, as it goes, what's his business, with this deal, will soon be my family's as well."

"His father is paying you to keep him on a leash?" Louis asked.

"No, his father is paying me to keep him in the city. The leash came afterward," Zayn shrugged, sliding his fingertips under the hem of Liam's shirt to touch the soft skin at his hips and stomach. "If you've got a problem with it-"

"I don't," Louis said quickly. "It'll just take a little while to get used to," he added. "Though," he sighed, looking critically at Liam, "I really should've known, even back in high school."

"I didn't know," Liam said, melting into Zayn's touch. 

"Oh, well, uh, how did you find out?" Liam frowned at Louis before looking pointedly at Zayn. "Oh. So. Oh."

"Uh huh," Zayn snorted before burying his face in Liam's shoulder. "Okay, babe?"

"Yeah," Liam responded. "Better now."

"Good," Zayn said, looking up at Louis again, before holding out his hand, offering Liam's leash. "Did you want to hold him for a while?" Liam gave him a brief panicked look before Zayn sighed. "It's just Louis, Liam. You guys were friends, remember."

"Right," Liam said quietly, and Louis walked over to Zayn, hesitantly taking the leash, letting it hang a lot looser than Zayn ever had. "Liam?" He asked, and Liam obediently hopped off Zayn's lap, walking to Louis.

"Hi." 

"Look at you, all grown up now," Louis said in awe, reaching out to touch Liam's shoulder. Liam smiled weakly, and looked anxiously back at Zayn who was still sitting on the beanbag. 

"Right here, Liam," he reminded him, and Liam nodded, turning his attention back to Louis.

"Yeah, you too, hey?"

"Yeah," Louis agreed, smiling. "You been doing good?"

"Better now," Liam said again, and Louis nodded in understanding.

"Springfield was never good for you – if I weren't so scared of what your father would do, I would've taken you with me when I left."

"But you didn't," Liam said.

"You're right, I didn't," Louis sighed, letting his hand fall away. "I regretted it every day – wondered what you were doing."

"Office work," Liam snorted.

"Of all things," Louis sighed. "Would've rather had you beside me in the coffee shop."

"Could still happen," Zayn said, and Louis looked over at him.

"He's allowed?"

"I'd encourage it," Zayn said. He and Louis shared a small nod.

"So it's okay then?" Harry asked, looking between his friends. "It's okay if Louis comes around?"

This time, it was Zayn who looked at Liam for confirmation before nodding. "He's always welcome here. Now, maybe we should tell Niall and Perrie it's safe to come in." Zayn took Liam's leash back from Louis, and the three of them headed outside together.

Later that night, as Liam curled up around Zayn's back, peppering kisses against the skin of Zayn's back, he asked, "Were you serious when you said I could work with Louis?"

"Why not?" Zayn asked, and when he turned to face his puppy, Liam's face was lit up like a child on Christmas morning.


	7. Thursday

Zayn found he'd been waking up earlier and earlier with every morning, and as the sun rose slowly from behind his curtains, he watched Liam stir, finally joining him in the world of the living. "Morning," Liam mumbled while yawning and stretching as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Morning, beautiful," Zayn smiled, running his hand lightly over Liam's neck, touching the soft skin at the edge of the collar. "How're you feeling?" 

"Good," Liam mumbled, wiggling his hips forward to press his morning wood against Zayn's hip. "So good, Zayn."

"You're always so good, aren't you?" Zayn chuckled, easily flipping them so that Liam lay flat on his back, looking adoringly up at Zayn. "Will you still be good for me if I tie you up? If I put something here-" Zayn traced his fingertips over Liam's wrists, "and here," to his forearms," and here?" His fingers danced up to the collar, smiling as he thought about the leash in the drawer next to the bed.

"So good," Liam whined, high and needy. 

"Good," Zayn confirmed, reaching into the drawer without hesitation, bringing out the leash, handcuffs, and a length of rope. "I need you to hold still for me, okay?" Liam nodded in confirmation as Zayn snapped the leash in place and fastened it to the bedpost so that Liam could move his head no more than a metre from the bed.

He then turned Liam over, brought his wrists behind his back, and snapped the handcuffs on tightly, before kissing his way down the back of Liam's thighs and using the rope to bind his ankles and calves. Zayn looked down at the man below him and smiled, admiring his handiwork momentarily before reaching back into the drawer for the bottle of lube.

"Kiss me," he demanded, and Liam complied, twisting his head around to get his lips on Zayn's. Satisfied, Zayn kissed his way back down Liam's body, sucking and biting along the way, leaving a trail of red marks on the pale skin as he made his way to Liam's ass. 

Liam intuitively pushed his ass higher in the air as Zayn pressed a kiss to it, soft and gentle, before reeling back to smack him hard, so hard until Zayn's palm tingled and red blossomed on the skin, bright, like cranberry juice.

Then Zayn's mouth fastened itself back to the skin there, biting, sucking over the red mark he'd left with his palm, then slowly but surely curling his tongue up against Liam's hole, listening as Liam let out a high pitched squeak. Zayn flattened his tongue against Liam, pressing again and again until Liam was trembling beneath him.

Zayn's hands gripped tightly at Liam's hips, and when he looked up, he could see Liam's fingers twitching, his wrists straining against the cuffs, his toes curling against the sheets, and the sheen of sweat gathered at the base of his neck. Zayn wanted to devour him, swallow him down, just to cough him back up and eat him again.

As Zayn fucked Liam's hole with his tongue, Liam gasped wordlessly below him, letting Zayn do as he pleased, twitching beautifully with every movement of Zayn's tongue and lips. It wasn't long until Liam was quivering, so close to the edge, rutting against the mattress in search of release.

Zayn pulled back and growled, his fingers digging into Liam's side. "No, up, come on," he said, pulling Liam back up off the mattress. He reached out and laid another solid smack against Liam's ass that had Liam moaning under him again, and Zayn crawled up his body to whisper in his ear, "I'm gonna make you come with my tongue inside your ass, and then I'm going to fuck you until you can't remember your name."

Liam gasped as Zayn licked his way back between Liam's legs, reaching up with his hands to tease Liam's balls. It took a few strong licks and then Liam was falling apart, convulsion with the pleasure that wracked his entire body. 

He gasped, clearly not expecting Zayn to press his finger inside so soon, but as he whimpered, oversensitive and spent, Zayn fingered him open slow and steady, adding one finger, and then another, the lube cool against the skin. 

"Gonna fuck you now," Zayn hissed, and it was all the warning Liam got before Zayn was balls deep inside him, holding back a choking gasp of his own. Zayn would've been embarrassed by how fast he came, but since he'd just spent the last while with his tongue in Liam's ass, he figured humility was out the window anyway.

He found that he didn't mind waking early at all.

As Zayn untied Liam from the bed, he took his time smoothing over the red skin, pressing into the marks and trying to figure out where bruises would blossom later that day. "I'd kiss you," Liam said, looking down at him dazed, "but you know."

"I'll go brush my teeth," Zayn chuckled, pressing one last kiss to Liam's sore wrist before standing up on unsteady legs. "Come join me in the shower in a little bit." Liam gave him an affirmative nod, and Zayn ducked into the bathroom to scrub his tongue.

Liam ducked into the shower just as Zayn was rinsing the shampoo from his hair. He snaked his arms around Zayn's waist, tucking his face into Zayn's neck. "Love you," he said sleepily, pressing a lazy kiss into the curve of Zayn's neck. Then, suddenly, his whole body tensed like he'd just realized what he said.

"Love you too," Zayn said easily, twisting around to get a better grip around Liam. "So much," he mumbled, pressing a tender kiss on Liam's lips. 

"Oh," Liam mumbled. And then, "Oh, god, oh god, I was so scared it was too soon, I didn't mean to say it, but like, I'm so glad I did? I mean it, I really, I do – I love you," Liam groaned, and then they were kissing again, fumbling, sloppy, slobbery kisses as Liam pushed Zayn up against the wall and pressed the length of his warm, slick body alongside Zayn's.

Zayn sighed heavily into Liam's mouth, groaning as Liam's hand wormed its way between their slippery, soaked bodies, angling their faces away from the shower spray in order to catch Zayn's lips again. "You," Zayn groaned, as Liam wrapped one of his big hands around both of them.

"Me," Liam agreed happily, kissing Zayn through his second orgasm of the morning, until the water ran cold and nothing could be heard but the panting of their breaths against each other.

When they finally cleaned up and made it to the gallery, bagels hanging from between their teeth, Niall's friend Josh was working on the plumbing and installing the new sinks. "It's going to look so good when it's done," Perrie sighed, petting one of the new shelves. 

"What is?" Niall asked absentmindedly from where he was openly, hungrily gaping at Josh's ass.

"Jeez, be more obvious, Niall," Perrie snickered, rolling her eyes. "I'm going to make us a new coffee table."

"Why do we need a new coffee table?" Zayn asked, looking nervously at the old one.

"Harry and Louis fucked on it this morning," Perrie said nonchalantly over her shoulder as she walked away. Zayn and Liam both took a careful step away from the table.

"Thank God for Perrie," Zayn muttered under his breath. "Is it too late to take back what I said about Louis being welcome?"

"If you're going off about this morning," Harry said with a grunt, "Please remember that is my table and it belongs to me."

"Good," Zayn said. "You can take it home and ravish Louis on it there, then. Perrie's making us a new one that we can, you know, eat off of without sanitizing."

"Okay," Harry chirped, dancing off, leaving Louis standing awkwardly next to Liam and Zayn.

"Sorry," he said, his voice small. Zayn groaned and walked away too, Liam trailing after him on his leash, leaving Louis to keep Niall from drooling over Josh's backside.

"We could try that?" Liam offered timidly as Zayn led him down the stairs and to the studio area where he was hoping to tackle the mess of canvases he'd left lying around for months. 

"Try what?" Zayn asked, distracted as he pulled a cover off a canvas to figure out which piece it was.

"A table?" Liam squeaked. Zayn looked up at that, smiling lightly.

"You want to?"

"If it's a thing you want, maybe, we can like, try it out, I mean, yes, I do," Liam said, sounding more sure of himself as the sentence continued.

"Tonight," Zayn said absentmindedly, without even turning to face Liam as he exposed yet another half-finished canvas, "I'm going to bend you over the coffee table and split you open with my cock, then I'm going to throw you on the couch and ride you until we both-"

"For the love of God please don't finish that sentence," Louis said, covering his face with his hands. "Your Irishman is upstairs worshipping your plumber, so, uh, I came down here," Louis explained.

"Good, you can help us move these then," Zayn said, and with Louis and Liam's help, he spent the rest of the afternoon organizing the canvases, storing them properly on the racks at the back of the room.

"God, that only took you, what, half a year?" Harry snorted, coming up behind Louis and looping a lazy arm around Louis' waist. "It's about damn time – this room looks so fucking big right now."

"It's going to look even bigger when we get the furniture back in the loft," Perrie grinned. "Speaking of, I'm done for the day I think, but I need help moving the table inside. "Can I borrow Liam?"

"Hey, we're perfectly capable of moving tables too, you know!" Harry defended himself and the rest of them, but Perrie just shrugged.

"You just don't look as good as Liam when you're doing it," she winked, taking his leash from Zayn's hand. "Alright, love?"

"Yeah," Liam confirmed before following her out the door.

"She's right," Harry said sadly. "I just haven't got arms and shoulders like those."

"Trust me, I'm glad you don't," Louis said, and Zayn looked away as they kissed.

Perrie was right – Liam looked amazing as he helped her heave the table through the gallery and into the studio for storage. Clearly it was an unfinished piece, but already it had taken shape into what looked like a solid piece of art. "Clear glass on top?" Zayn asked, eyeing the table and ignoring his urge to bend Liam over it.

"Yes," Perrie said. "That way if someone else decides to fornicate on top of it, we can just change out the glass instead of throwing out the whole damn thing."

"We aren't throwing out my table," Harry said, quickly running up to the aforementioned piece of furniture and hugging it tightly. "I'm taking him to a better home now."

"I wasn't aware tables had genders," Perrie mumbled, motioning for Liam to set the table down. "I'm off-"

"To see Jade?" Harry asked.

"To eat dinner," Perrie frowned.

"So, to see Jade then," Zayn snorted, and Perrie sighed, shaking her head.

"Bye, boys." They waved, eyes following her out the door. Niall and Josh left together not long after, coming down from the loft to say their goodbyes. 

"The sink is up and running – if you need me back for anything, you know where to find me," Josh said, and then they were gone.

"Did you want to come over and grab some dinner?" Harry offered, but Zayn declined, smiling at Liam. 

"I think we have some plans of our own."

The entire drive back to the apartment was filled with sexual tension hanging thick in the air. Zayn's fingers drummed in an unheard beat on the steering wheel, his grip tightening and knuckles whitening with every red light he hit. And Liam, next to him, quivered in anticipation, his whole body drawn taut and rigid.

"Clothes, off," Zayn commanded the minute the door clicked shut behind them. He tossed the keys to the counter and peeled off his shirt in one movement, waiting impatiently as Liam struggled to get his t-shirt over his head. 

"Can't," Liam mumbled meekly, embarrassed as he'd tangled himself in his own clothes.

"What am I going to do with you?" Zayn clucked, helping Liam remove the shirt and jeans, even kneeling to take his socks off. "Alright, living room," he said, tugging on the leash before Liam even moved his feet.

Liam followed him into the living room, scrambling to push the loose papers from the surface of the coffee table. Zayn smirked, finally taking off Liam's underwear along with his own before he bent the man backward until they both went crashing down onto the table.

"Been wanting this since I saw you back in Springfield," Zayn admitted, his hands wandering over Liam's expansive chest, tweaking his nipples, and then reaching up to unclip the leash that had been hanging limply. "Didn't think I'd ever get to touch you – Waliyha, my sister, she was telling me you grew up so well. She'd probably faint if she saw you like this, spread out on a table," Zayn continued.

He pressed brief kisses on Liam's lips for a while before moving down to suck on his neck, his clavicle, and then his nipples. He took one of the hard nubs between his teeth and nipped gently before tugging a bit, pulling off and returning his lips to Liam's.

"You're all mine, aren't you? Spread out and ready, just for me?"

"Yes, for you," Liam whimpered, his hands clutching uselessly at Zayn's back, nails digging into the skin by accident. 

"I need to get the lube," Zayn said after a few more kisses, and Liam let go of him reluctantly. As Zayn jogged into their bedroom, he could feel Liam's eyes on him, watching his every move.

He was fast, grasping the bottle before he returned to the living room where Liam lay on the table, lazily stroking himself. "Gotta buy more soon," Zayn said, flicking the cap open and coating his fingers. He then hoisted Liam's legs up over his shoulders and slowly started fingering him open, crooking his fingers inside Liam until he found that sweet spot.

"Just fuck me already, holy shit," Liam gasped, and Zayn glared down at him. 

"Are you telling me what to do?"

"No," Liam squeaked, but even as he did, he jerked his hips forward, pressing himself against Zayn's fingers. 

"That sounded a lot like a demand to me," Zayn said, slowly pulling his fingers out from Liam, hunching over to bend Liam properly in half. "Might have to make you wait after that – make you beg for it."

"Fucking, Zayn, c'mon," Liam grunted, hands flailing as he tried to grab at Zayn but failed, arms flopping uselessly to his side. Zayn sighed, gripping Liam's thighs hard as he jerked his hips forward. 

"Patience," he murmured, leaning down to kiss Liam again, if only to get him to stop talking. Liam wormed his tongue into Zayn's mouth and bit down hard against Zayn's bottom lip, and Zayn growled, glaring down at him. "Bad dog," he hissed, and then without warning, gripped Liam's legs tighter and shoved himself inside. 

Liam groaned, his whole body relaxing to allow Zayn inside, gasping as Zayn started to thrust steadily in and out without leaving time for Liam to adjust. "Oh fuck," Liam gasped, squeezing around Zayn, and Zayn only moaned, leaning over to bury his face into Liam's neck.

"Gonna come," he gasped, and Liam reached a limp hand up to grab at his hair. If it was anyone else, Zayn would've immediately pushed the hand off, but it was Liam, and because it was Liam, it just left him panting, gasping as Liam tugged lightly – panting hard into Liam's neck until he came, wet and slick and sticky – inside Liam.

"Like that?" Liam asked, looking dumbfounded as Zayn gingerly pulled out – Liam didn't react, as if he hadn't even noticed the absence, still in awe at the way his fingers looked tugging at Zayn's hair.

"I guess so; no one's ever done it before," Zayn said. "Pass me that lube again."

"What, why?" Liam asked, but passed it over as he did, watching as Zayn carefully slicked his fingers once more, only to crouch over Liam and finger himself open. 

"I wasn't joking when I said I wanted to ride you," Zayn said. He took his time, careful to stretch himself properly and use a liberal amount of lube to coat Liam's dick before he sank himself down, using his hands on either side of Liam's head on the table to brace himself. 

"You're so fucking tight, holy shit," Liam choked out, and Zayn noticed he'd become more vocal during sex as the days went on. He filed that information away for later. "Feels so good, Zayn."

"You always feel good, Liam," Zayn mumbled, nipping at his ear a bit, flexing his legs experimentally before he gingerly raised himself and lowered himself again, and again, bouncing up and down on Liam's dick until his legs were trembling and he was hard again, with Liam coming apart beneath him.

"Holy shit," Zayn gasped, feeling absolutely filthy as he rolled off Liam, collapsing on the floor against the table and probably leaving a trail of mess behind him. Liam responded by crawling off the table, shaking off the after effects of his orgasm to promptly wrap a large paw around Zayn's dick and jerk him off, quick, fast twists that made Zayn come all over his stomach in a matter of seconds.

"Holy shit," Zayn repeated. Liam just hummed, exhausted, and dropped his head in Zayn's lap. "Okay," Zayn sighed, collecting himself. "Shower."

"Shower," Liam echoed, and they slowly picked their tired bodies from the floor, dragging their limbs to the bathroom.

Their shower turned into a warm bath, as after they rinsed off, they filled the tub and just relaxed. Liam lay in the v of Zayn's legs, leaning back against his chest and pressing soft kisses over any part of Zayn he could reach. 

Zayn had dumped in a bit of sandalwood scented bath stuff he stole off Harry into the tub, and the whole bathroom was enveloped in a pleasurable scent. He felt he could stay there forever, with Liam in his arms, and Liam's lips brushing at his skin. 

"You've been talking more," Zayn commented, running his hands over Liam's chest and stomach just because he could.

"I wasn't sure if you'd like it, before," Liam explained.

"I like you," Zayn frowned. "No, I love you. We've been over this."

"Love you too," Liam said easily, and Zayn smiled down at him.

"Does that mean you'll talk more now?"

"Yeah, if you want me to," Liam said, and Zayn nodded again, leaning over to press a kiss into Liam's damp hair. 

"Whatever you're comfortable with, babe."

"Comfortable with you," Liam sighed, wriggling against Zayn and turning his head so they could kiss properly.


	8. Friday

Zayn woke up later than he had all week on Friday. His head was still groggy as he sat up to find his bed empty and no sign of Liam in the apartment. He panicked for a moment before he took a deep breath and reminded himself that Liam was a full grown man who was fully capable of doing things such as buying groceries alone.

Almost as if he sensed Zayn's alertness, the front door of the apartment opened and Liam came lumbering in wearing a wife beater and gym shorts with a towel slung over his shoulder. "Hey, I was just at the gym," Liam said, rolling his shoulders a bit as he spoke. "I was going to go for a swim after I clean the sweat off me if you want to join."

Zayn noticed that Liam had taken off the collar and hung it on the hooks near the door next to his jacket. He smiled, reaching up to touch the exposed birthmark on his neck and shook his head. "I'm not too big on water."

"You took a bath with me yesterday," Liam said, sounding distinctly unimpressed.

"Yeah, but like, I can't drown in a bath," Zayn frowned.

"Can't swim?" Liam asked, and Zayn ducked his head as he nodded, cheeks flushing from embarrassment. 

"Yeah. It's pretty awful, hey?"

"I could teach you," Liam said cheerily, ducking into the shower as Zayn started brushing his teeth. "We can do it tonight or something."

"Okay," Zayn agreed easily through a mouthful of toothpaste. He felt he'd regret it later when he actually had his toes in the water, but with Liam right there, everything felt so easy, so natural. It felt wrong to disagree. 

As they made breakfast side by side and sat at the table facing each other, their ankles touching, Zayn couldn't help but comment, "You're not wearing the collar."

"Is that okay?" Liam asked, and Zayn nodded. 

"Not today?" He asked, and Liam smiled vividly back at him. 

"Nah, I don't think I need it today."

"Cool," Zayn said, and turned his attention back to his toast. 

They walked side by side into the gallery that day, Liam talking animatedly about how he thought the space would look better with some life – some plants, or something, he kept insisting, and Zayn nodded, making a mental note to take Liam plant shopping later on.

"Maybe one of those indoor trees," Liam suggested, and Zayn grinned fondly, ruffling Liam's hair and nodding.

"Yeah, I think it'd go well, as long as one of us remembered to water it."

"I can be responsible for that," Liam said eagerly, and Zayn just smiled, nodding. 

"It'll be your tree then," he said.

"What tree?" Niall asked, eyeing Liam and Zayn warily.

"We're getting one of those indoor trees for this place," Liam said. "It could use some life, especially now that Zayn's cleaned up all his canvases. Once we move the furniture back to the loft, we'll need something to fill all this space."

"Man, the puppy's right," Harry said, sidling up beside Niall. "This place could definitely use some life."

"Guys, the kitchen appliances are here," Perrie called from the front room, effectively distracting the group from indoor trees. It took nearly an hour to get the new stove, fridge and microwave up the stairs and situated properly, and once the delivery personnel had cleared out, they were left staring at the furniture in the studio area.

"I really don't want to do this," Harry complained.

"Oh shut up," Louis said from where he leaned against the doorway. "I just got here, don't start whining now."

"BooBear," Harry sighed, walking over to hug Louis despite the pout on his face.

"The faster we do this the faster we get to have movie nights and game nights and whatever nights here again without the smell of drying paint or wood polish," Niall said, and like that, they all started slowly moving the furniture up the metal stairs.

"I can't wait to use this new projector screen," Harry crooned, petting the string that hung from the ceiling as Louis side-eyed him nervously.

"You guys are weird," Liam said matter-of-factly as he dropped a beanbag chair to the ground and collapsed on it.

"Coming from a man who walks around on a leash," Louis said, claiming a beanbag for himself, "I take that as a compliment."

With the loft finally completed, they all breathed a sigh of relief, happy to put most of the hard work behind them. "I can't believe I finished the table this morning before you guys even showed up," Perrie bragged with a snort, and three hands came down to thwack her lightly in response.

"I'm glad we still have a week to get ready for the gallery opening next week," Zayn sighed, relieved. "I haven't had a show here in a while and there's still quite a bit of cleaning to do."

"Oh, relax, won't you?" Niall grinned. "The pieces won't even arrive until Tuesday or Wednesday. Let's throw on a movie, make some popcorn in our new microwave, and hang out here for the rest of the day."

"Uh, Niall?" Liam said timidly. Niall turned his head, curious. "We don't actually have popcorn, or, like, any food here." 

"Damn," Niall laughed. "I was hoping. Well, let's run to the store, shall we?"

The afternoon flew by in a mess of buttery popcorn and Chinese takeout. At some point, Louis and Harry left in a huff of noodles tangled in their hair and sweet and sour sauce sliding down their shirts, and later, Perrie left saying she had plans with a mysterious person she refused to name.

"You're going to leave too now aren't you?" Niall smiled, looking between Liam and Zayn who both blushed, but did nothing to deny it. "I'll lock up," he insisted, so Zayn led Liam back to the car and drove them home.

"Were you serious this morning when you said you'd go swimming with me?" Liam asked as they walked through the door.

"Yeah," Zayn sighed in defeat. "Let's go now before I change my mind." 

It was easy for Liam to collect towels for them both as Zayn dug around his closet to find the swim trunks he never wore, except for the odd day that Harry had dragged him to the lake. He found Liam waiting impatiently for him by the door, thumping his foot on the ground.

"The downstairs neighbours either hate you or probably think you're actually a dog," Zayn commented as he locked the apartment behind him and followed Liam to the pool.

"Maybe both," Liam said nonchalantly as he pushed open the door. "Awesome, no one's in here."

"No one uses this pool," Zayn said. "Perrie likes it because she can use it without being interrupted by people. She hates people, or so she claims."

"She's a liar then," Liam said, tossing his towel onto a chair and toeing off his shoes. "Let's do this."

"Let's not," Zayn said, but splashed his way down the stairs into the shallow end of the pool anyway. "Okay, what do you need me to do?"

"Relax, first of all," Liam said, coming up behind Zayn, moving smoothly along in the water, and gently massaging Zayn's shoulders. "Do you know how to float?"

"Float?" Zayn echoed, and Liam nodded.

"Right, let's get you floating." 

Zayn easily filed learning to float under one of the most terrifying things he had ever done. As Liam gently guided his body into a horizontal position, it took everything in Zayn's power not to thrash out as he felt each and every one of his muscles lock up like clockwork.

"You need to relax," Liam reminded him, gently supporting him as he lay in the horizontal position. "Take a deep breath in, can you do that for me?" Zayn did as he was told, feeling his jaw slowly unclench as he did.

"You look so good like this, babe," Liam murmured, gently removing one of his hands from under Zayn's back and trailing it over the wet skin on Zayn's chest, his touch ghosting over Zayn's nipples and watching them as they hardened into tight pert nubs.

"Liam," Zayn whined, and then he sucked in a deep breath and realized Liam had let go of him completely. "Fuck."

"What're you swearing about?" Liam teased him, catching Zayn easily as his limbs flailed out and his body started to tilt under the water again. "Let's try that again."

Zayn grinned as Liam purposely trailed his hands slowly over Zayn's stomach and the small of his back before holding him horizontal again. "Your tattoos," Liam sighed wistfully. "Always wanted some."

"What stopped you?"

"My father."

"I think you'd look good with tattoos," Zayn said, and Liam brightened at that, like it was what he'd been waiting to hear all along. "You know, I know you like being told what to do, but that doesn't mean you have to listen all the time."

"Like today?" Liam asked, and Zayn nodded.

"We can have more days like today if you want, or we can have more days where you wear the leash, or just the collar. It's not my decision to make, and if you don't feel comfortable making that decision, I can make it for you, but please know that you have the power to veto it."

"Some days, like today, I'm okay," Liam said slowly, reaching up to tug anxiously at his hair. "But it doesn't usually last long – sometimes not even a whole day – so I think I'd like it more if you decided for me, but don't, like, give me too many days without it because I might need it."

"We'll figure it out as we go – we seem to be doing okay," Zayn said, and Liam nodded, his hands flopping to his sides. 

"You're floating, Zayn."

Once Zayn had mastered the ability to float on his own, they gave up the lessons for the night, deciding to revisit the pool regularly within the next weeks in order to get Zayn comfortable in the water. "Thanks for doing this," Zayn said quietly as they rinsed off together in the shower. "I don't know if I ever would've gotten in that pool if it weren't for you."

"Swimming is a good survival skill," Liam said offhandedly, like he was parroting back something his father had told him as a child. Nevertheless, it was true, so Zayn let it drop. After they toweled off and exited the bathroom, Liam tugged Zayn nervously toward the door where his collar and leash hung, waiting.

"Is it okay now? Can you, uh, can you put it back on me?" 

"Sure," Zayn agreed easily, reaching up to buckle the collar in place around Liam's neck. He dropped to his hands and knees afterward, letting Zayn massage at the base of his neck and shoulders for a while. Soon, Zayn clipped on the leash and led Liam, still on all fours, to the bedroom.

"You've been such a good dog," Zayn praised, petting Liam lightly. "Did you want a treat?"

Liam grinned up at him, tongue hanging out of his mouth, and Zayn laughed as it looked like Liam had, in fact, forgotten he could speak. "I'll grab you a treat." Zayn rummaged around the kitchen until he found what he was looking for – a large chocolate chip cookie baked into the shape of a dog bone.

"Perrie made this for you today," Zayn grinned, showing the cookie to Liam, whose eyes widened comically. 

"For me?"

"For you," Zayn confirmed, and Liam grinned coyly before lunging forward and taking a bit of it from Zayn's hands. Zayn only laughed, crawling onto the bed and letting Liam onto his lap, feeding him bits of cookie until Liam was licking at his empty hands.

It wasn't long before Liam went from licking at cookie crumbs on Zayn's palms to sucking on Zayn's fingers, taking each digit carefully in his mouth, wrapping his tongue around them and providing the perfect amount of suction for Zayn to start groaning.

"You've got perfect lips," Zayn said, watching, fascinated as Liam's mouth worked its way over his right hand. "Like, absolutely perfect."

"Perfect lips for what?" Liam asked him teasingly, and Zayn groaned again as Liam dropped Zayn's hand in favour of kissing his lips properly before pushing him back on the mattress and sucking on the bare skin of his stomach. After leaving a nice mouth-shaped mark behind, he carefully untucked Zayn's towel before tossing it carelessly on the floor, and shedding his a moment later. 

Zayn gasped as the cool air of his bedroom hit the exposed skin, and Liam started kissing his way down Zayn's happy trail until he was nose to nose with Zayn's cock, only to nip a bath around it and suck gently on Zayn's hipbone. 

"Tease," Zayn groaned, tugging on Liam's hair as Liam made his way even further down to press a string of kisses on the inside of Zayn's thigh and back up to his hipbone again. Liam just hummed in agreement, pushing his nose into Zayn's balls, and up into the soft hair at the base of his cock before finally, _finally_ , darting out his tongue to taste.

At the first touch of Liam's tongue, Zayn's toes curled and his stomach clenched, his whole body tightened in anticipation of what was to come. Then Liam swallowed him down, all tongue and lips and spit, Zayn's cock sliding in deep until the head bumped the back of Liam's throat. 

And oh.

Zayn momentarily forgot every word he'd ever learned in Urdu and English.

He babbled uselessly as he tugged on Liam's hair, Liam's mouth working pure magic as he came apart within minutes, gasping and shaking, coming down Liam's throat in hot, sharp bursts so sudden he nearly cried.

"Holy shit," Liam gasped, and when Zayn finally opened his eyes and evened out his breathing again, all he saw was Liam writhing on the bed, whining, tugging Zayn's hand down between his legs. All it took was a few quick tugs before Liam was coming all over the bed, entire body shaking as he collapsed into Zayn's arms.

"You really get off on blowing me?" 

"You just noticed?" Liam shot back and then immediately blushed a dark red all the way down his chest.

"You get off on blowing me," Zayn said, pleased, reeling in Liam for a kiss only to taste himself, musky on Liam's tongue. 

"You should stop saying it," Liam insisted, and Zayn grinned, kissing him one last time before padding off to the bathroom to find something to wipe them off. 

"You're being awfully straightforward and demanding tonight," Zayn grinned as he crawled back into the bed, tugging lightly at Liam's collar. "You know, I think I might need to remind you of what you are, pet."

"Yes please," Liam breathed quickly as Zayn crawled over him. "I've been bad, right?"

"Yeah, you've been pretty bad – pretty demanding, thinking you have the right to ask me what to do." Zayn's eyes darkened as he looked down at Liam, cowering underneath his body. 

"What are you going to do to me?" Liam squeaked. Zayn grinned before leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to Liam's lips.

"Turn over," Zayn said, grabbing the leash from where it was tied around the bedpost, and unclipping it from Liam's collar. "I'm going to whip you with this-"

"Where?" Liam interrupted him.

"Right here," Zayn said, laying a loud smack with his open palm across Liam's ass. 

"Oh."

"Yes, so I'm going to whip you with this," Zayn said, pulling the leash taut in his hands, "and you're going to count them for me."

"Okay," Liam said, body quivering in excitement already. 

"How many, Liam?" Zayn asked, rubbing a hand over Liam's ass. Liam arched closer to him on instinct, humming with anticipation.

"Five, maybe?" He asked, biting his lip. "I've never, you know, done this, so-"

"It's okay," Zayn assured him. "I haven't either, so let me know if I need to stop."

"Yes," Liam promised quickly.

"Safe word?" Zayn asked, just to make sure.

"Springfield," Liam said without hesitation.

"Good," Zayn said, leaning down to press a kiss into Liam's shoulder. "Now count them for me."

He took a deep breath to calm himself before he cracked the makeshift whip against Liam's ass. He watched the pale skin blossom with colour and the way Liam's whole body relaxed after the leather touched his skin, slumped forward. 

"One," Liam choked out.

The second crack came easier, the leash moving more naturally in Zayn's hand. He heard the sound clearer too as it echoed around the bedroom like the telltale sign of something kinky happening within his walls. He liked it.

"Two," Liam said, his voice cracking.

The third came fast and nearly without warning, Zayn's hands working on their own accord to elicit another whimper from Liam before he even knew what was happening. 

"Th-th-three," Liam stuttered, breath hitching. 

The fourth was easy.

"Four!" Liam practically yelled, his voice booming.

The fifth was the hardest because while Zayn was itching for it to be over only so he could sooth and care for his poor dog, Liam was whimpering, looking like he needed it, and was ready to beg for it. 

"Five," Liam gulped. "That's five, fuck- that's, fuck, Zayn!" And then he was coming, his body collapsing weakly over the sheets. 

"Right here, love," Zayn said, leaning over and pressing gentle kisses against Liam's cheek, neck, and shoulders. He tossed the leash aside and gently rubbed his hands over the red marks left behind on Liam's backside. 

He pressed a few soft kisses there too before he reached into the drawer beside the bed and pulled out a tube of lotion, squirted a bit on his hands, and gently massaged it into Liam's skin. "Does that help?" He asked, and Liam nodded, wiggling his ass a bit and humming in approval. 

Zayn smiled, crawling up the bed to kiss Liam before he said sadly, "I'm going to have to change the sheets, but you're going to have to move for me to do that."

"Oh."

"You're cute," Zayn smiled, petting Liam softly, "but I'm still going to make you move." He grabbed the leash from where he'd tossed it earlier and clipped it back to Liam's collar, leading his puppy off the bed and to the other side of the room, where he tethered the leash to the dresser. Liam whimpered until Zayn gave him a pillow to sit on, and then he curled around it, contented.

After Zayn stripped and replaced the sheets on the bed, he turned to find Liam half asleep on his pillow. Smiling fondly, Zayn untied the leash, leading Liam back to bed without any protest. "Tired?' He asked, and Liam hummed in acknowledgment.

He fell asleep that night with Liam draped warmly over his back, breathing in a slow and steady rhythm, warmer than any blanket Zayn had ever used – so warm that the heat flowed into his skin and veins, coursing through his body, pumping through his heart, like Liam was burning inside of him with every beat.


	9. Saturday

Liam woke Zayn up by barking at him. "What is my life?" Zayn asked, his voice muffled as he pushed his face into the blanket, lobbing the nearest item, a pillow, in Liam's general direction.

"Woof," Liam said, bouncing onto the bed, jostling Zayn from his comfortable position.

"Whaddaya want?" Zayn groaned, eyes shut tight in terror, like squeezing them tighter would save him from the morning light.

"Woof," Liam repeated, sounding plaintive. Zayn groaned, forcing his eyes open and licking his dry lips, trying to shake himself away. He glanced at the clock to see it was just past eight, which was still too early for a Saturday morning.

Liam butted his head lightly against Zayn's arm from where he was crouched on the bed, trying to wiggle his head under Zayn's hand in search for attention. "Okay, okay, I get it," Zayn said, tangling his fingers into Liam's hair and tugging him closer before petting him softly, using his fingers to massage Liam's scalp.

They stayed like that for a while, Liam grinning contentedly under Zayn's touch. "Did you need me to take care of you?" Zayn asked softly, and Liam nodded eagerly from underneath Zayn's fingers, reaching up to claw a bit at Zayn's chest. "Okay," Zayn said, reaching over to the bedpost where the leash was wound. "Let's feed you first, okay?"

He clipped the leash to Liam's collar, gently rubbing behind his ear before leading him off the bed and into the kitchen. "Did you want a sandwich?"

"Woof," Liam agreed, grinning with a wide mouth. Zayn groaned at the endearing smile that bubbled up from the pit of his stomach and turned his attention to the fridge, careful to keep the leash wound tightly around his wrist as Liam sat on the kitchen tile and waited patiently for Zayn to fix him a sandwich.

Zayn pulled out the chair and sat carefully, watching as Liam knelt between his legs and rested his chin on Zayn's knees. "You look so happy like this," Zayn observed, ruffling Liam's hair before picking up a section of the neatly quartered sandwich. Peanut butter and jam, Zayn knew now from the list on the fridge, was Liam's favourite.

And he was slowly learning, he thought, watching Liam wrap his lips around the sandwich and nibble until he was licking at the pads of Zayn's fingers. He was learning what Liam liked, and what he didn't – some of it was written out for him on a list, on his fridge or in his bedroom. Some things were all up to Zayn – the way Liam liked it when Zayn slipped his fingers under the collar, or the way Liam never outright asked for the leash when he needed it.

Over the past week, Zayn had been cataloguing these things, putting aside bits of information that he knew would come in handy one day in taking care of Liam – because if he weren't to give it his all, to take care of Liam best he could, he'd be a holy fool.

As Liam continued to eat from Zayn's hands, Zayn thought about the way Liam smiled his way through superhero movies even though he never explicitly said he liked them, or the way he balked at the sight of spoons on the table to the point where Zayn had unconsciously started eating everything with a fork.

These were little pieces of Liam that had suddenly wormed their way into his life, much like Liam himself – something that had no place in Zayn's life until it was there, and then it was like he had no place away from it. Liam had become such a crucial part of Zayn's everyday decisions that he didn't even consider it anymore – it just was.

The past week had felt like a steady learning curve for both of them; Zayn still had a lot of questions about the way Liam behaved back in Springfield, the way his father treated him, or the way he dropped to his knees for Zayn so easily, so trusting, like a dog looking for an owner.

And trust – that was such a funny thing, Zayn thought, because he'd been raised by a businessman who ran with the motto "trust nobody" on his best days. Zayn could feel his baba rolling over in his grave as Liam placed his hands on Zayn's knees and arched his back, chasing the last bite of sandwich with docile a kiss on the lips. Trust.

"You taste like salami," Zayn rolled his eyes, the slight waver in his voice betraying his introspective thoughts, but he kissed back, his lips pressing firmly on Liam's soft and plush ones. It was easy to take Liam back to bed after that, lifting him up and tossing the large body over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

The leash never left his hand until they reached the bedroom, where Zayn, as per usual, tied it to the bedpost. "Eyelashes," Liam mumbled nonsensically as he casually knocked his head against Zayn's thigh. "You've got, you've got these eyelashes, they're- oh, your eyelashes are gorgeous, Zayn," he said, and they were the first real words he'd said all day – an ode to Zayn's eyelashes.

Zayn's voice sounded a bit broken when he found it. "I love your lips," he said, and he liked to think he was good with words, or maybe not necessarily good, but perhaps better than the general populous. He was fine with words, until Liam was there, tangled around him like a knotted snake. Then he was speechless. And without warning, Liam was there, under his fingers, soft and pliant in his hands, and he was at a complete loss for words, totally dumbfounded by sheer adoration.

Liam was acting particular affectionate- he kept nuzzling into Zayn's legs, his saucer eyes glistening with pure devotion. Zayn wasn't too sure how to handle that, his hands robotically fluttering over every surface of Liam he could touch. 

"Want you," Liam said, and Zayn nodded slowly, dazed. "Want you," Liam repeated, and Zayn scrambled into action then, pressing Liam flat on his stomach and straddling his back. 

"Always want you," Zayn groaned, gently kneading his fingers against the soft muscle of Liam's back. "I want to try something," Zayn added, slipping his fingers under Liam's boxers to knead his ass. Liam perked up, head twisting to look at Zayn curiously over his shoulder.

Zayn reached over to his nightstand, digging around in his drawer for a moment before he pulled out a leather cock ring. "Okay?" He asked as Liam took it in his hands, looking at it curiously. "I've only ever used it on myself," Zayn said, but it's adjustable so it'd fit you – it feels amazing, yeah?" Zayn grinned.

"Never seen one before," Liam said as Zayn slowly stripped them both until they were naked. He was still marvelling at the ring when Zayn plucked it from his fingers and knelt between Liam's legs, slipping it onto him. "Feels weird."

"It'll feel good soon, I promise," Zayn said, leaning over to kiss Liam properly. They made out sloppily like teenagers for a while, tongues licking into each other's mouths, naked bodies intertwined with no sense of urgency. It was nice. 

Zayn's hands found their way to Liam's nipples and he spent some time rolling the hard nubs between his fingers until Liam was gasping, writhing beneath him, bucking up against Zayn's thigh. The whole mood shifted then, something dark and hungry crawling into Zayn.

He found the bottle of lube quickly, slicking up his fingers and pressing the first one into Liam without hesitation. "Oh my fu-uck, Zayn," Liam gasped as Zayn pressed the second one in quickly, thrusting with his fingers while using the other hand to coax Liam to full hardness.

Then Zayn was leaning down, fucking into Liam with two fingers and _his tongue_ , lapping at Liam's hole like he was starved. "You're so fucking, oh my god-" Liam bit his tongue, tugging anxiously at Zayn's hair. "Fuck, you're gonna- oh God, fuck me, c'mon, Zayn-"

"Soon," Zayn hummed against Liam's thigh, replacing his tongue with a third finger as he looked up at Liam lovingly. "I want to open you up properly first, your hole so-"

"Shut up," Liam gasped. "Shut up, shut up, shut up-"

"What was that?" Zayn asked dangerously, his eyes darkening as he removed his fingers from inside Liam with a loud squelch. Liam gulped. "Are you telling me what to do again?"

"No, no, I was just-"

"You were telling me what to do," Zayn insisted, crawling up the length of Liam's body like a predator on the prowl. He leaned over to press his mouth right again Liam's ear as he hissed, "Bad dog."

Liam whimpered at that, eyelids drooping shut and entire body curling in on itself like he was trying to make himself small as possible. Zayn lurched back, sitting comfortably around Liam's middle as he looked down at his puppy. "Do you know what I like to do to bad dogs?"

Liam whimpered again, and Zayn flipped him easily, positioning Liam on his hands and knees before lining himself up against Liam's hole and thrusting into him in one smooth motion. "Gonna fuck you so hard you won't remember your name. Gonna mark you up so you never forget that you belong to me. Going to make you come harder than anyone ever has. Gonna fill you up. Gonna make you _mine_ ," Zayn ripped through his speech, his voice low and gravelly in Liam's ear.

As Zayn thrust hard into Liam, the back and forth motion of his hips never stilling and showing no mercy, his fingertips clutched hard enough at Liam's hips to bruise, his mouth working hard to mar every bit of exposed skin he could – Liam's neck and shoulder speckled in love bites.

"Zayn," Liam whimpered. "I want to- oh god, feel so good – so full, god, you feel like a, oh, like a – Zayn-" Liam was reduced to incoherent babbling as Zayn slammed into him again and again. Zayn straightened, peeling himself off Liam's back to fuck him in earnest, his fingers reaching down easily to play with Liam's balls and admire his swollen cock in the ring.

"Come for me," Zayn insisted, pulling his fingers back to place a soft kiss over one of the marks he'd left on Liam's back. Liam came with a shuddering, gasping breath, striping the sheets in white and collapsing underneath Zayn, who chased him with his hips, dick twitching until he came seconds later inside Liam, filling him up. "Fucking filthy cumbucket," Zayn growled in Liam's ear, and the soft whimper he got in response was worth it.

Zayn pulled out, gaping at the way his come trickled out of Liam's hole before turning Liam over and pulling him into a bruising kiss. They lay like that for a minute before Zayn finally reached down, removing the ring from around Liam and bringing it into the bathroom to clean, and returning with a warm cloth to clean Liam off after tidying himself.

"Let's take a nap," Zayn said, and Liam just hummed in agreement, already halfway to sleep.

"Did we literally spend all day in bed?" Liam asked as Zayn rubbed the sleep from his eyes. They were lying so close their noses were pressed together, sharing the same air. 

"Wish we could spend every day in bed like this," Zayn murmured, reaching out to run his hand along Liam's cheek. 

"God, I should go to the gym," Liam said, though he showed no intention of moving, in fact, nuzzling into Zayn's touch instead. 

"Liam, after what we did this afternoon, I think it's fine if you skip the gym."

"I'm still a bit sore," Liam admitted, sighing. "Should at least get dinner though."

"Dinner I can do," Zayn said, reaching over to grab his phone. "Or, well, I can pay for anyway." Liam laughed, and when Zayn mulled over the take out menus on the small screen, Liam just let out a contented sigh and wiggled even closer.

They went to the living room after they finished their dinner, dressed in sweats and t-shirts, curled together on the couch to watch movies. Sometime around seven, Perrie, Louis, Niall and Harry came stomping in to interrupt them.

"Oh my god, this whole apartment smells like sex," Niall exclaimed, wrinkling his nose in disgust. 

"What else would it smell like?" Liam asked him blankly, and Harry mimed gagging at Perrie, who snorted and covered her mouth. 

"Well isn't it a good thing we didn't stop by earlier, right Haz?”

The six of them settled down to watch the Batman movie Zayn had thrown on, thoroughly distracted. A few hours later, as they were goofing around, Niall interrupted their jokes with a very serious, "Liam, I'm glad you're here."

Taken aback, Liam frowned, leaning against Zayn as Zayn tightened his hold on the leash.

"You guys are happy together," Louis filled in the blanks, smiling at them. "You're happier like this."

"Honestly, I don't remember what life was like before this," Zayn said, smiling fondly at Liam, and when they kissed, they pretended they couldn't hear their friends' cat calls. "Love you," Zayn whispered against Liam's ear.

"Love you too."

It was late when they finally kicked everyone out. Liam was off his leash, tidying the living room when Zayn approached him with an envelope. "Here, for you, babe."

"What's this?" Liam asked, opening the flap and pulling out a cheque, then frowning at the numbers on it. "Zayn, I- what?" Liam dropped to his knees almost automatically, confusion clear on his face as he looked up at Zayn, doe-eyed and perplexed. 

"Your first paycheque," Zayn said, to which Liam frowned, bewilderment never leaving his expression.

"I don't need money, Zayn. You take care of me."

"I told your dad I was giving you a job, Liam. You get paid for work," Zayn said, but Liam frowned, staring at the cheque for a bit before reaching up and shoving it into Zayn's front pocket.

"I don't want it."

"Liam," Zayn said warningly, holding out the cheque, and in an act of defiance, Liam moved forward, closing his teeth around the cheque before tugging it fully into his mouth and chewing it a few times and spitting it to the floor. He looked up at Zayn, his actions saying exactly what he thought about the money.

"Liam, you don't have any money – what if you wanted to leave? What if you get bored? What if you want to go back to Springfield?"

"You'll be here," Liam insisted vehemently, and well, Zayn couldn't deny it. 

"I don't need the money because you're going to take care of me," Liam said. "I don't need a bedroom because I stay in yours – you can get rid of that bed, I know you miss your studio. Zayn, you don't have to- you can keep the money. Keep the money, and keep me."

"Fine," Zayn relented, tossing the soggy, chewed up cheque into the trash. "But you're going to get a job tomorrow."

"It's a good thing Louis already offered me one," Liam said cheerily, perking up as he rubbed his head against Zayn's knees. Zayn just sighed and reached down automatically to pet him, like he wasn't sure how to deny Liam anything. And as Liam's soft hair fluttered under his fingers, he knew Liam was right. He'd keep him.

"Let's go back to bed," Zayn said, using a hand on the back of Liam's neck, right at the collar, to guide him into the bedroom. Liam made a soft snuffling sound as he followed obediently, hopping onto the bed as Zayn stripped him again.

As they tucked themselves under the blankets again, Zayn couldn't help but pull Liam close to him, circling his arms around the larger man. "One day, we're going to have a proper full day in bed, not an accidentally one," Zayn insisted.

"I'll order us food that I can feed you in bed, and maybe some new toys – a dildo, a vibrator, a plug with a soft tail – would you like those things?" Liam nodded enthusiastically, snuggling against Zayn's body eagerly. 

"I'll wake you up with a blowjob, and I'll let you come down my throat, then I'll open you up with my tongue, slow and steady until you're begging for it. Then I'll spank you until I can't feel my hand, and if you're really bad, maybe I'll whip you again.

"Then I'll fuck you slow and steady until you can't remember your own name, and fill you up like you were made just for me. You'll fucking love it, such a filthy little pet, aren't you?" Zayn pressed a soft kiss to Liam's lips and he reached down to find Liam already hard, mewling at the first touch of Zayn's hand against his cock.

"I'll make you come so many times you won't be able to think coherent thoughts," Zayn insisted, curling his hand around Liam and stroking him to full hardness before pumping him fast and tight, pulling back the foreskin to swirl his thumb over the precome collected at the slit. 

Liam, finally getting a grasp on what was happening, licked his palm and snaked his own hand around Zayn's hard on, pulling them closer together until their dicks bumped in a wet mess of precome and Liam's spit. 

Zayn came first, gasping and trembling, falling apart as Liam gave a flawless flick of his wrist that sent Zayn headfirst into his orgasm without warning. Liam followed not too long after, Zayn jerking his hand purposefully until he felt Liam tense beside him.

Zayn cleaned them both up after he caught his breath, smiling softly as he wiped the drying come off Liam's stomach. "We'll have a proper day together, promise, and no one is going to barge in on it, not even Niall."

"Good," Liam hummed, pressing a tiny kiss to Zayn's cheekbone. "Niall doesn't belong in our bed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> epilogue to follow


	10. Epilogue

"Do you ever want to go back to Springfield?" Zayn asked Liam and Louis from where he leaned against the counter, sipping his coffee whilst the two of them worked at cleaning the machines, preparing to close the café.

Zayn had just finished closing up the gallery when Harry insisted they had to go pick up Louis and Liam from work. "I don't," Liam said flatly, like he didn't even have to consider it. "Can we put that on the list of things I won't do? I know it's a sex list, but like, I don't think I ever want to go back there."

"You've been gone for three years – you're a grown ass man," Louis rolled his eyes. "Even both Zayn and I have been back to visit since you left that place."

"Yeah, well, not everyone can handle it like you or Zayn," Liam said shortly, frowning as he reached up to tug at the ring on his collar.

"Oh, just fucking go to him, I can finish up here," Louis sighed, and Liam nodded thankfully, tossing his apron aside and scampering out from behind the counter to greet Zayn with a hug and a kiss. Zayn had the leash ready, like he always did when he picked Liam up from work, and clipped it to the collar, giving it a soft tug just to feel Liam deflate in his arms.

"Long day?" Zayn asked, and Liam nodded – he'd worked a full ten hour shift alongside Louis when two of the employees were out of commission due to exams at their university. 

"Yeah. Some guy was bugging me about this," Liam said quietly, reaching up to tug at the collar shyly. 

"There's always some guy," Zayn shrugged, and Liam brightened at Zayn's indifference.

"You don't think it's weird? You don't think I'm a freak?"

"It's a little bit late to be asking him that, don't you think?" Harry asked, striding into the café with a roll of his eyes, jacket slung over his shoulder like some high class fashion model. "We should get going – hurry up, Lou. Niall and Perrie are already at the bar with Josh and Jade; we don't want to keep them waiting."

"Fine, I'm done, I'm done," Louis sighed, walking out from behind the bar. "I mean it though, Liam. It's been years since you've been back – since you've seen your father. Don't you want him to see how good you've been doing?"

"I work at a coffee shop," Liam said, sounding distinctly embarrassed about himself. Zayn frowned, using his fingers to tilt Liam's head up by the chin.

"No. You're not allowed to put yourself down like that."

"Right," Liam said, and he'd gotten that from the first time they'd met, the first time when Zayn scolded him for calling himself a "faggot," but he still needed the reminder sometimes. And when that reminder came, it felt good, like an anchor, holding him in his proper place.

"We should, uh, get going now," Harry said timidly, like he was afraid to interrupt their moment. Liam nodded jerkily, and that time, it was him that led Zayn from the coffee shop.

Zayn didn't bring it up again until nearly a month later when he got off the phone and approached Liam looking pained. "I need to go back to my family," he said, frowning at his hands. 

"What happened?" Liam asked, at his side in the blink of an eye.

"Nothing bad," Zayn said quickly. "It's just, uh, Safaa, my baby sister – she went off and got eloped with a boy from the city!" 

"Wow," Liam chuckled. "Sounds like she takes after you."

"I never got eloped," Zayn said flatly.

"You did run away though," Liam said pointedly, and Zayn could not deny that. 

"Anyway, Safaa's home now, but Waliyha said that she wants me to come home and visit them properly. I'd like you to come with me this time – and before you say anything, if you're not comfortable with it, we don't even have to visit your father. I just don't like spending so long without you."

"Oh," Liam frowned, chewing his lip like he was mulling it over before he nodded. "Okay. I'll go."

"Just like that, huh. All I had to do was ask," Zayn smiled, leaning over to kiss Liam softly.

"Well when you say it like you don't want to be away from me…" Liam trailed off, embarrassed, but Zayn just sighed and kissed him all over his face. 

"You'll follow me anywhere, wouldn't you?"

"Off a cliff, if I had too," Liam said vehemently, and that was all he managed to say before Zayn dragged him off to bed. 

In a matter of minutes, they had shed their clothes in a practiced manner, their naked bodies pressed close together. It was Liam who crawled down the length of Zayn's body that time, taking Zayn in his hand and mouth, sucking softly until Zayn was grappling uselessly at Liam.

"It's been a long day for me," Zayn said, tugging lightly on Liam's hair so that he came off Zayn's dick with a soft pop. "I could use you inside me." 

"Yes. _Yes_ ," Liam agreed, kissing Zayn sloppily and enthusiastically until Zayn could taste himself on Liam's tongue. Liam fucked him slow and steady that night, whispering "I love you" in Zayn's ear until they both disassembled like shattering glass, coming hot and fast with nothing but each other's names rolling off their tongues.

The next weekend, they returned to Springfield together. Liam wore his leash the entire way there in anticipation of being free of it the duration of their stay, his fingers drumming nervously on his thigh. "I called my father," he told Zayn somewhere around the midway point of the drive, chewing his bottom lip. "I'll have to stop by and see him."

"Of course," Zayn said, and Liam shot him a pointed look. 

"You're coming." Zayn knew it was not to comment about Liam's demanding tone and instead just nodded his head.

"Wouldn't have let you go alone, love."

They rented a room in the only hotel in town; the keeper greeted them by name and showed them the room, eyeing Liam's collar nervously. Zayn sighed, watching as Liam reached up to touch it self-consciously. "We can take it off, if it makes you more comfortable," Zayn suggested, but Liam shook his head looking affronted.

"No. I haven't gone out without it in three years, Zayn. What makes you think I want to take it off now?"

"Just offering an out," Zayn assured him, and Liam rolled his eyes. 

"When have I ever wanted one?"

Zayn thought back to that first time, years ago, when he had to insist Liam choose a safe word. It felt weird now, thinking of how much of a struggle it was for Liam to spit that word out, and he hadn't had to use it once. No, Liam never needed an out.

"You've never needed one," Zayn said, and Liam nodded, proud. Zayn smiled, petting Liam softly as he unclipped his leash. "They're expecting us for dinner. I believe they invited your father."

"We best not keep them waiting then," Liam sighed, making no move to lift himself from the bed.

"Everything will be okay," Zayn said, putting a hand gently on the back of Liam's neck. "I'll make sure of it. Now come on," he tugged on the ring of Liam's collar. "We have to go."

And Liam followed after him obediently, like he always had.

Waliyha answered the door with a frazzled smile; she had a crying infant on her hip and a small child holding on to the hem of her shirt – her own was the tiny one, the older one belonging to Doniya. Zayn smiled, greeting both her and his nieces with forehead kisses before she let them into the house.

"Good to see you, Liam," Waliyha said politely, eyes lingering on the collar.

"Good to see you too," he returned, and they shook hands politely.

"Everybody's in the kitchen," Waliyha said, leading the way. 

Everybody was in the kitchen. Literally everybody. Liam's father, Zayn's mother, Doniya, her husband, their two sons and daughter, Waliyha, her husband and their daughter, and Safaa, alongside a gorgeous man whom Zayn assumed to be her husband.

It was a bustle of laughter and activity, conversation crashing loudly between all parties – it all fell silent once Zayn and Liam entered the room. "Zayn," his mother said his name, rushing forward to pull him into a warm and familiar hug – as he wound his arms around her small frame in return, he couldn't help but watch Liam from the corner of his eye.

Liam's father had approached him, and though they were standing a foot apart, it was clear that the focus was on the collar wrapped neatly around Liam's neck – a soft brown leather one to match the strap of Liam's watch that Zayn had given him on his thirtieth birthday – and wasn't that a thought, that here they were, thirty years later in their hometown, all grown up.

"You look good," Liam's father said. Liam nodded, and his father clapped him on the shoulder before turning away. Liam let out a loud breath as he sidled up beside Zayn, eyes looking frantic. Zayn placed a grounding hand on the back of his neck and nodded, gesturing toward the chairs.

"Let's eat," Zayn's mom declared suddenly, and everyone else quickly rushed to find a seat at the table. 

From beside Zayn, Liam smiled at the mountains of food on the table and leaned over to whisper in his ear, "It's a good thing Niall's not here, or there'd be nothing left for any of us."

"I don't think even Niall could put this much food away," Zayn mused, reaching over to grip Liam's knee under the table. "And even if he could, we could always sneak out in the middle of the night and just get McDonalds for ourselves. We're staying at the hotel for a reason."

"Maybe we could do that anyway," Liam said softly, and Zayn nodded in silent agreement before turning his attention back to the food. 

When they finished eating and the children had been carted off to the living room by their parents, Liam was quick to offer his hand in helping Zayn's mom clear the table. As Liam was quickly occupied with empty plates and leftovers to separate into Tupperware containers, Zayn found himself ushered into the hallway by Liam's father.

"Mr. Payne," Zayn said, trying to hide the disinterest in his tone. "What can I do for you?"

"I just want to know if Liam has been causing you any trouble in the past year since we last spoke," he said, and Zayn frowned.

"Liam has never once caused me any trouble, sir."

"Well, you'd be the first," Mr. Payne sighed, reaching into his wallet. "Again, I can't thank you enough for taking care of him for me. It was a burden that I wasn't sure how to handle by myself – he was never the same after his mother and I divorced."

Mr. Payne scrawled out a cheque with a large sum of money, but Zayn shook his head, refusing the money. "I can't take this."

"I did promise you money to care for my son," he insisted, and Zayn shook his head again.

"I can't, Mr. Payne. I'm sorry – Liam has his own job now. He makes enough money to support himself, and that's fine. You can keep the money; I'll keep him." Zayn locked eyes with Liam's father for a long time before Mr. Payne nodded and pocketed his chequebook.

"You take better care of him than I ever could," he said, and that night, it was Zayn who showed Mr. Payne out the door without so much as a goodbye to his only son.

"Does it bother you?" Zayn asked Liam after relaying the night's events to him on their way back to the hotel. 

"Why should it bother me?" Liam asked, confused. "I'm happy – I've got what I need."

Zayn smiled, reaching over to rub at Liam's neck. "It makes me happy to hear you say that," Zayn said. 

"Makes me happy to say it too," Liam returned. "I used to think that if we came back together, you'd try to leave me behind – that being back here would make you realize how fucking useless I am, and that you wanted nothing to do with me in the beginning."

"And I took one look at you and changed my mind," Zayn reminded him as they walked through the door to their hotel room. Almost immediately, Liam dropped to his knees patiently as Zayn crossed the room to their suitcases and found the leash, clipping it to Liam's collar. 

"Your mom said it looked good on me," Liam said, self-consciously playing with the collar, his cheeks flushing. "When you were talking to my dad, and we were doing in the dishes – she asked me if you were treating me right, and if we were being safe.

"I mean, we weren't – not at the beginning – it was weird, but like, it was my fault that I didn't want shit like a safe word and I let you do all that stuff without clarifying what I want, but I think we've got it figured out a bit better now."

"I like to think we have a system that works," Zayn agreed, settling on the bed and letting Liam hop up next to him. "I think our parents are a bit happy that we've got our own lives now – that even though we left Springfield behind, we've got something so much better suited for us in the city." 

"There's nothing 'better suited' for me than you," Liam said, looking up at Zayn adoringly. And Zayn was only a man – a man of much strength and admirable self-control, but a man nonetheless. He pounced.

Liam tasted tangy, like the lemon slices he had in his glass of water. He felt like warmth exploding under the pads of Zayn's fingers, and sunshine glowing from underneath the bulk of Zayn's body. He was inside, outside, and all around Zayn's senses, invading his scent with warm vanilla, and his sight with miles of toned skin revealed with every article of clothing that Zayn insistently removed.

And for every pair of handcuffs, every new toy they received in innocuous brown packages in their mailbox, every time they used the rope, or leash, or anything else in between, it never measured up to a night like that one, tangled together in cheap, scratchy hotel sheets covered in a sheen of each other's sweat.

Nothing in life could ever add up to the most boring moments, like the endless kisses, the roaming hands, the soft nips and slick bites – saliva and teeth and lips and tongues. Nothing could ever add up to the way that they just fit together like that, Liam's strong arms, Zayn's lean body, and the way that they just worked together to make something indescribably beautiful. 

There were no words in any language for the thudding of their hearts in sync, the way their naked bodies arched toward each other without preamble, drooping hairstyles, ugly, breathless panting, or the way their toes curled against the sheets, begging, wanting, waiting-

There weren't ever going to be words for that white hot pleasure, the way it shot through Zayn every single time without warning, without any indication of how each time felt better than the last. There weren't ever going to be enough words to describe matching orgasms that rippled through them like tsunamis, like the aftershock of disastrous earthquakes, or like the tornadoes through abandoned towns.

And even if someone were to find a way to describe those things, Zayn knew that even they would not be able to define what happened after. It was poetry in motion, beauty in the fluidity of shifting bodies, of warmth and affection – of love.

A love that hadn't begun in a romance novel, that hadn't found its way through times of turmoil. No, this love, it was forged from a man who was waiting for his place in life, and another who had been patiently biding his time for someone to sweep him off his feet.

Zayn closed his eyes that night with a sweat-damp Liam curled in his arms, and knew he'd never have it any other way. Maybe one day things would change – maybe in a year, or two or three, they wouldn't return to Springfield anymore. 

Maybe they'd start a family of their own somewhere, a family where Niall inhaled everything in the fridge and argued about video games with Josh until their ears bled, and probably left stray wiring all over the house. A family where Louis complained about the coffee every day, and Harry insisted on painting life-sized murals in his spare time, and Perrie and Jade finally admitted they were together.

A family, Zayn knew, was something he had in Springfield, but for the first time since he'd left, he started to think that maybe it was something he could have of his own. He and Liam, they were grown men.

They had strong heads on their shoulders, and their bodies had yet to give out. They had a home in the city and the best friends so affable they seemed only real in dreams, and yet there they were, alive and breathing, conspiring together under the same stars no matter where they were in the world.

And somewhere in a hotel room in Springfield, Zayn held Liam just a little tighter, and Liam clutched at Zayn until they were just a little bit closer. Zayn leaned down to press a feather-light kiss on Liam's forehead, and watched as the chest of his partner rose and fell in steady breaths.

Somewhere in a hotel room in Springfield, under the same stars, the same sky, the same thunderclouds he grew up beneath, Zayn fell in love all over again.

Vonnegut probably had it right when he said: so it goes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the end.
> 
> thanks for reading.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
> 
> You can find me on twitter as [@Munnoaster](http://www.twitter.com/Munnoaster/) or tumblr as [chloroformdreams](http://chloroformdreams.tumblr.com). Please come say hi! I love new friends! :D


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